News Briefs - Dec. 22
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The Latest Headlines:
- Retailers Disappointed at Holiday Sales
- Oshkosh Receives $49.4 Million Contract From Army
- Fuel-Economy Standards May Get Overhaul, Journal Says
- Survey: Gasoline Prices Steady Over Past Two Weeks
- FedEx Moves 7.5 Million Packages on Peak Shipping Day
- Hino to Increase U.S. Truck Dealerships by 20%
- Report: Hyundai Gives Up on U.S. Truck Market
- ArvinMeritor, ZF to Defend Patent Suit
- Oshkosh Receives $49.4 Million Contract From Army
Retailers Disappointed at Holiday Sales
The last weekend before Christmas did not deliver the sale bonanza merchants were hoping for, the Associated Press reported.Consumer spending accounts for about two-third of all economic activity.
Discounters and luxury stores fared the best this past weekend, AP said, but sales were mixed at mid-priced department stores and mall-based apparel chains. Transport Topics
Oshkosh Receives $49.4 Million Contract From Army
Oshkosh Truck Corp., a manufacturer of specialty trucks, said Monday it had received a $49.4 million contract to remanufacture Oshkosh defense trucks and trailers that were deployed during Operation Iraqi Freedom.Oshkosh said in a release it will remanufacture Oshkosh Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Trucks, Heavy Equipment Transporters and trailers and Palletized Load System trucks and trailers to "like new" condition.
The vehicles are scheduled to be returned to the U.S. Army by September 2004 for redeployment. Transport Topics
Fuel-Economy Standards May Get Overhaul, Journal Says
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expected to propose a revamping of fuel-economy standards that would cover many sport-utility vehicles, the Wall Street Journal reported.One proposal would extend fuel-economy rules to cover the heaviest pickup trucks and SUVs, which are not subject to any standards, the Journal said. The fuel-economy rules written in the 1970s exempt vehicles that weigh more than 8,500 pounds when fully loaded, a provision originally crafted to avoid penalizing trucks used as work vehicles.
As a first step, NHTSA could publish "advance notice of proposed rulemaking" as early as this week, which would tighten the definition of light trucks, the Journal said. Transport Topics
Survey: Gasoline Prices Steady Over Past Two Weeks
The average price of gasoline dipped 0.8 cent over the past two weeks, according to the Lundberg Survey of 8,000 stations nationwide.The Dec. 19 national survey found the price for all grades combined was $1.512 per gallon, 6.51 cents higher than it was on Dec. 20, 2002. About one-third of commercial trucking uses gasoline.
Analyst Trilby Lundberg said the stability was not expected to last because it was based on lower wholesale prices that are already climbing in much of the country, the Associated Press reported.
The national weighted average price of gasoline, including taxes, at self-serve pumps Friday was about $1.48 for regular, $1.58 for mid-grade and $1.67 for premium. Transport Topics
FedEx Moves 7.5 Million Packages on Peak Shipping Day
FedEx Corp. moved 7.5 million packages last Monday at its hub at the airport in Memphis, Tenn., the company's peak shipping day, the New York Times reported Sunday.On an average day, the company ships about 5 million packages. Last Monday night, 155 FedEx airplanes passed through the hub, an increase from 135 on a normal night, the article said.
FedEx is ranked No. 2 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
Hino to Increase U.S. Truck Dealerships by 20%
Hino Motors Ltd. plans to expand its U.S. dealership network by 20% to 120 by March 2004, European news service AFX reported Monday citing a Japanese newspaper.Hino, an affiliate of Toyota Motor Corp., said the expansion was prompted in part by 1,800 orders received for a new fuel-efficient truck introduced in October, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported.
The expansion to 120 dealerships will focus Midwest, the article said. Hino's existing dealers are concentrated mainly along the West Coast and northeast. Transport Topics
Report: Hyundai Gives Up on U.S. Truck Market
Hyundai has abandoned its attempt to break into the U.S. truck market, the Financial Times reported Monday.The South Korean company has sold 98 medium-duty trucks this year, well below its target of 750 vehicles, and has only been able to persuaded seven dealers to stock its products, the article said.
Hyundai has been in discussions with DaimlerChrysler about combining its truck business, but the talks have been on hold for several months after Daimler struck a deal with Hyundai's Chinese car partner, the Times reported. Transport Topics
ArvinMeritor, ZF to Defend Patent Suit
ArvinMeritor Inc., ZF Friedrichshafen AG and ZF Meritor LLC said Dec. 15 they were “committed to a vigorous defense” in Eaton Corp.’s suit against them.Eaton had alleged that the ZF Meritor FreedomLine automated manual heavy-truck transmission infringed on Eaton patents.
The FreedomLine partners said that transmission’s “innovative design is protected by numerous patents worldwide.” Transport Topics
This story appeared in the combined Dec. 22 & 29 issue of Transport Topics.
