Executive Briefing - Feb. 9
- Delphi Idling 3,700 Next Week
- Lechters Closing 166 Stores
- Motorola Slashing 4,000 Jobs
- Warehouses May Be New Insurance Market
- Pa. Cracks Down on Trucks on I-80
- Myers Earns 21 Cents/Shr
- Japan, England Cut Interest Rates
- Owner-Operators Jump Into Nafta Debate
- Cooper Tire Earns 41Cents/Shr
- Report Says Volvo May Cut Mitsubishi Ties
Delphi Idling 3,700 Next Week
Beginning Monday, about 3,700 workers for vehicle parts manufacturer Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. (DPH) will be idled for the week, due to production cuts by General Motors and other customers, Bloomberg News reported.The temporary layoffs will hit about 2,000 workers for the in Ohio, and 500 each in Michigan and New York.
Plants in Alabama, Indiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Wisconsin will also be affected.
Delphi's largest customer, General Motors, also plans temporary shutdowns next week of plants in Georgia, Wisconsin, Oklahoma and Mexico, Bloomberg said.Transport Topics
Lechters Closing 166 Stores
Housewares retail chain Lechters Inc. (LECH) plans to close 166 of its stores, leaving it with 241 Lechters and 83 Famous Brand Housewares Outlet stores, Reuters re-ported Friday.Retailers and manufacturers are both major freight customers of trucking companies, so what happens to stories and factories will affect their carriers.
The Harrison, N.J.-based company is trying to return to profitability, and plans to focus on selling higher quality kitchen products, according to the news service.
Most of the stores will continue to operate under the Lechter's brand, but some will be transformed into the new "thinkkitchen" brand -- with up to six locations meeting that fate by June, Reuters said.Transport Topics
Motorola Slashing 4,000 Jobs
In yet another manufacturing cutback that can crimp freight shipments for trucking firms, Motorola (MOT) plans to cut about 4,000 jobs or 3% of the workforce from its semiconductor operations by year's end, the Associated Press reported Friday.That marks the third wave of employee cuts by Motorola in 10 weeks. The locations were not announced.
Previous layoffs hit the high-tech manufacturer's cellular telephone operations. Transport Topics
Warehouses May Be New Insurance Market
A frozen-food distribution warehouse in New York, where electric supply is expected to be tight this summer, has an insurance policy to protect against loss of electricity, Reuters reported Friday.Risk management executives find more companies are starting to do the same, spurred in part by the rolling blackouts in California, the news service said.
An official at the Insurance Information Institute told Reuters that only one in four companies buys business interruption insurance, and even fewer get coverage for utility interruptions.
Instead, some power-hungry facilities like smelters participate in the hedging program utilities offer -- so they get the power they need, but they must pay high rates during shortages, Reuters said. Transport Topics
Pa. Cracks Down on Trucks on I-80
State troopers and PennDOT officers this week began surprise checks for unsafe and speeding trucks on the stretch of Interstate 80 between Route 109 near Stroudsburg, Pa. and the New Jersey border, the Pocono Record reported.On Wednesday, the first day, 27 of 62 trucks inspected were put out of service for safety or weight violations, the newspaper said, noting that the majority were garbage trucks.
Officers will continue the checks on a spot basis along the highway in Monroe County, the scene of a truck-related crash in January fatal to two people, according to the report.Transport Topics
Myers Earns 21 Cents/Shr
Myers Industries (MYE) Friday announced that for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31 net income per share was 21 cents, down 52% from 44 cents per share last year.The figure includes a nine-cent-per-share after-tax restructuring charge taken for the closing of the company's Dayton, Ohio manufacturing facility.
Stephen E. Myers, chief executive, said a continued decline in heavy-duty truck pro-duction, the slowing of automotive production and the slowing of the economy com-bined to restrict company performance.
Myers Industries manufactures plastic and rubber products for industrial, agricultural, automotive, commercial and consumer markets.
The Akron, Ohio-based company also distributes tools, equipment, and supplies for the tire service and automotive underbody repair industry in the United States. Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Japan, England Cut Interest Rates
In two overseas actions that can affect U.S. manufacturing and truck freight activity later this year, the central banks of Japan and England cut interest rates to boost their economies.The Bank of England did not explain its action to cut rates by a quarter-point, but this is its first rate cut since June 1999 was seen as an effort to head off the slowdown now hitting the United States.
The Bank of Japan trimmed a key rate by 0.15%. This was its first cut in five years in a rate that was already at just 0.50%, and comes after a government report showed Japan's economy contracted in the July-September quarter.
Those cuts follow aggressive U.S. rate cuts by the Federal Reserve in January that totaled a full percentage point. While the U.S. rate actions would have the most im-pact on domestic freight activity, economic strength overseas can affect foreign de-mand for U.S. factory goods and how much import competition may cut into U.S. factory output. Transport Topics
Cooper Tire Earns 41Cents/Shr
Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. (CTB), which makes some truck tires, announced fourth-quarter earnings per share of 41 cents, excluding non-recurring charges.This compares with per-share earnings of 42 cents for the last three months of 1999, the Findlay, Ohio-based company said.
As it announced in October, the company plans to close or downsize 22 facilities by year's end for a cost savings of $30 million.Transport Topics
(Click here for the full press release.)
Owner-Operators Jump Into Nafta Debate
A truck drivers industry group-the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association–has joined the Teamsters in calling on President Bush to continue ban-ning Mexican trucks from operating throughout the U.S.OOIDA president James Johnston added his voice to others unhappy with the new administration's announcement Tuesday that it would seek to open the border as prescribed in the North American Free Trade Agreement.
OOIDA members, Johnston said in a statement from the organization's headquarters in Grain Valley, Mo., "believe that the trucks they see coming from Mexico are in terrible physical shape and far from complying with our safety regulations."
The Bush administration's announcement closely followed a finding by an arbitration panel that the U.S. is violating provisions of the treaty providing for free truck access throughout Mexico, Canada and the U.S. Transport Topics
Report Says Volvo May Cut Mitsubishi Ties
Swedish truck maker AB Volvo (VOLVY)may cut its ties with Mitsubishi Motors Corp. (MMO-BER), according to a Financial Times report carried by Bloomberg. Volvo currently owns a 5% stake in Mitsubishi.
The report cited analysts who had met with this week with Volvo’s chief executive officer, but noted that Mitsubishi reiterated that its relationship with Volvo has not changed.
In recent months, Volvo has been concerned that its rival, DaimlerChrysler, owns a 34% stake in Mitsubishi and holds four out of 11 board seats in the company.
According to various recent reports, Volvo fears DaimlerChrysler may get confidential company information through its Mitsubishi alliance. This has led to speculation that Volvo may sell its stake in Mitsubishi. Transport Topics
