News Briefs - June 1
The Latest Headlines:
- Construction Spending Rises 1.3% in April
- Oshkosh to Acquire Jerr-Dan for $80 Million
- FedEx Increases Dividend; CEO Says Overseas Markets Expanding
- Transport Corp. Approves Repurchase Program
- Minnesota Stations Fined for Low Gasoline Prices
- Canada's Economy Grows 2.4% in 1Q
- Oshkosh to Acquire Jerr-Dan for $80 Million
Construction Spending Rises 1.3% in April
Construction spending in the United States rose 1.3% in April to a record annual pace of $970.4 billion, the Commerce Department said Tuesday.The monthly increase was the third straight and followed a 2.4% rise in March.
Construction spending can boost demand for trucking services because spending increases the number of shipments of goods and building materials.
The report also said government spending on transportation projects rose 4.4% to $19.4 billion. Spending on roads and highways rose 3.1% to $70.7 billion. Transport Topics
Oshkosh to Acquire Jerr-Dan for $80 Million
Specialty truck maker Oshkosh Truck Corp. said Tuesday it agreed to acquire 100% of the stock of Jerr-Dan Corp., a manufacturer of towing and recovery equipment, for $80 million.Jerr-Dan, which had sales of more than $100 million in 2003, was an affiliate of Littlejohn & Co.
Oshkosh said in a statement Jerr-Dan will operate as a subsidiary. The transaction is expected to close in July. Transport Topics
FedEx Increases Dividend; CEO Says Overseas Markets Expanding
FedEx Corp. said Friday its board of directors increased its quarterly cash dividend to 7 cents per share from 6 cents.The dividend is payable July 1, to stockholders of record on June 10, the company said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer Frederick Smith said the company’s international markets were continuing to expand, despite uncertainty and anti-American feelings, the Associated Press reported.
Smith said FedEx should continue to see growth in all major divisions as long as the recovering national economy does not take an unexpected nosedive, AP said.
FedEx is ranked No. 2 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
Transport Corp. Approves Repurchase Program
Truckload carrier Transport Corp. of America Inc. said Friday its board of directors approved an additional repurchase program to acquire up to 500,000 shares of its outstanding common stock.The company said in a statement it had utilized most of its previous stock repurchase authorization, which was approved March 11.
Transport Corp. is ranked No. 61 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest U.S. and Canadian trucking companies. Transport Topics
Minnesota Stations Fined for Low Gasoline Prices
The Commerce Department on Friday announced a $70,000 fine against Murphy Oil for keeping prices too low at 10 Minnesota gasoline stations, the Associated Press reported.A state law adopted in 2001 prohibits stations from selling gasoline without taking a minimum profit. Currently, stations must charge at least 8 cents per gallon, plus taxes, more than they paid for it.
Hank Heithaus, vice president for retail at Murphy Oil, told AP the company “probably did violate” the law because of a misinterpretation. Some of Murphy’s stations are based at Wal-Mart stores, AP said.
Commerce also said Kwik Trip Inc. was fined $5,000 for violations at one station in Apple Valley, about 20 miles south of the Twin Cities. Transport Topics
Canada's Economy Grows 2.4% in 1Q
Statistics Canada said Monday the nation's economy grew by 2.4% in the first quarter as consumers opened up their wallets and foreigners bought more Canadian goods, Reuters reported.The government's statistics agency also revised the economic growth rate for the fourth quarter of 2003 to 3.3% from a previously announced 3.8%.
onsumer spending jumped 1.3% in the first quarter, the strongest gain since the third quarter of 2000, while exports were up 1.5% after a 2.3% gain.
Factory output rose 0.6% in the first quarter, the report said. Transport Topics
