News Briefs - April 19
The Latest Headlines:
- Fed's Next Statement May Pave Way for Rise in Interest Rates
- AAA: Retail Gasoline Prices Reach Record $1.803
- Tests Show Driver in Maryland Tanker Crash Was Sober
- More USF Dugan Workers Seek Teamsters Representation
- Mitsubishi Fuso's Chairman Quits Over Recall
- AAA: Retail Gasoline Prices Reach Record $1.803
Fed's Next Statement May Pave Way for Rise in Interest Rates
Although the Federal Reserve is not expected to raise interest rates when it meets in early May, it could say conditions for such an increase are falling into place, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday.The most likely changes to the Fed's statement would be a recognition that U.S. job growth is improving, and that the inflation rate has stopped falling, the Journal said.
Fed policy makers will probably say the risks of inflation are balanced, unlike recent statements that warned of a small risk of it falling too far, the article said. Transport Topics
AAA: Retail Gasoline Prices Reach Record $1.803
AAA said Saturday the average retail price for a gallon of regular gasoline reached a record $1.803.The trucking industry burns an estimated 269 million of gasoline each week. AAA said the price Saturday was about 22 cents higher than a year earlier.
Meanwhile, the Department of Energy said the highest prices this year are likely to be seen later in April or in May, Reuters reported.
In addition, the gasoline supply system remains susceptible to severe sudden price spikes if refineries or pipeline have problems this summer, DOE said.
AAA said it bases its price average on its survey that covers about 60,000 gasoline stations nationwide. Transport Topics
Tests Show Driver in Maryland Tanker Crash Was Sober
Tests by federal investigators showed the driver of a tanker truck that plunged from an overpass onto Interstate 95 near Baltimore and exploded earlier this year was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol, the Associated Press reported.The accident killed trucker Jackie Frost and three others on Jan. 13 along the East Coast’s main north-south highway. The truck loaded with gasoline plunged three stories off the overpass and exploded atop other vehicles.
The National Transportation Safety Board suspected the tanker's load may have shifted, causing the truck to become unstable. They are also examining the truck's transmission and an axle, AP said. Transport Topics
More USF Dugan Workers Seek Teamsters Representation
The Teamsters said Friday truck drivers and dockworkers at the USF Dugan terminal in Little Rock, Ark., have filed petitions with the National Labor Relations Board for an election seeking union representation.USF Dugan is a regional less-than-truckload carrier owned by USF Corp., which is ranked No. 10 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies
The union said in a release the elections would likely take place in six to eight weeks.
Already this month, USF Dugan workers in Cincinnati and Mobile, Ala., voted to join the union. Workers in Memphis, Tenn., will vote on representation on April 23. However, workers in Nashville, Tenn., voted against the union on April 9. Transport Topics
Mitsubishi Fuso's Chairman Quits Over Recall
Mitsubishi Fuso Trucks & Bus Corp., which is recalling more than 130,000 of its trucks and buses to fix faulty wheel hubs, said Chairman Takashi Usami has resigned, Bloomberg reported.The Japanese truck maker is 65% owned by DaimlerChrysler AG. A new chairman was not immediately named, Bloomberg said.
Fuso last month applied to Japan's government for the country's biggest product recall, to fix defaults that could cause wheels to come off. The defaults have been blamed for causing 50 accidents, including one death, Bloomberg said. Transport Topics
