P.M. Executive Briefing - Dec. 21
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Port of Vancouver Looks to Trucking Assoc. to Settle Drayer Dispute
Canada's Vancouver Port Authority is requesting help from the British Columbia Trucking Association to settle ongoing conflicts with truckers, the Journal of Commerce Online reported Wednesday.In 1999, a trucker strike cost the port $30 million in business and forced shippers to go to competing ports in the Pacific Northwest, the story noted. The truckers were demanding hourly wages while waiting for their trucks to be loaded. The strike ended when VPA made a temporary agreement to improve loading backlog and guarantee hourly wages for waiting drivers.
But now, at the request of the port authority, BCTA will intervene and try to negotiate the hourly wage provision for truckers, the article said. Transport Topics
Penske Truck to Acquire Comcar Leasing
Penske Truck Leasing said Thursday that it plans to buy Comcar Leasing, another truck leasing company. The purchase, which is pending regulatory approval, would add 800 tractors and 1,365 trailers to Penske's fleet of 152,000 heavy-, medium- and light-duty trucks. Penske said the acquisition would also help the company expand in Florida and Georgia, where Comcar is well established.
Orlando, Fla.-based Comcar is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Comcar Industries Inc. Penske, based in Reading, Pa., is a joint venture of Penske Corporation and GE Capital. It has an annual revenue of $2.7 billion, the company said. Transport Topics
Online Sales Surge in November
Online sales were up in November, a trend that bodes well for package delivery companies like United Parcel Service (UPS) and FedEx (FDX).
The National Retail Federation and Forrester Research released their Online Retail Index Thursday, showing that total spending for online sales increased from $4.5 billion in October to nearly $6.4 billion in November.
More than 22 million households shopped online in November, spending an average of $285 per person, the survey found.
Online sales for November exceeded the combined sales in November and December 1999 by $1.4 billion, said Scott Silverman of NRF. Even if December's numbers are slightly lower than November's, he still expects online spending to more than double last year's performance.
In the small ticket category, toys, video games and apparel were November's biggest online sellers, followed by books. Airline tickets were the hottest big-ticket items, followed by computer hardware, food and beverages, and consumer electronics. Transport Topics
Bush Economy Warnings Stir Debate
One of President Clinton's economic advisers complained Thursday that warnings of possible tough economic times from President-elect Bush and his team could make things worse. The Reuters news service said that was part of a fresh debate raging over those warnings.Gene Sperling, who heads Clinton's National Economic Council, said on ABC's "Good Morning America" that with all his warnings about economic risks Bush may be spreading more anxiety than is justified, Reuters noted.
Bush repeated his concerns about the economic slowdown, and the need to be ready in case of an actual downturn, this week as he named his choice for Treasury secretary, Paul O'Neill. However, when Bush visited Clinton at the White House earlier in the week, Clinton dismissed fears about the economy by saying he did not expect a recession to unfold.
Reuters cited one economist explaining that the incoming administration would need to make sure any blame for a slowdown or recession lies with the outgoing administration, and another noting that the economic warnings may help Bush justify his proposed tax cut.
It also reported that Vice President-elect Cheney on Thursday told reporters he and Bush were not trying to talk down the economy, and that no one knows if the current slowdown might ultimately turn into a recession. Transport Topics
Freight Connection Reports Decreased 3Q Earnings
Transportation broker Freight Connection Inc. (FTCN) on Thursday reported third quarter net earnings of $7,718 or one-tenth of a cent per share. This is a drop from the third quarter of last year, when the company had earnings of $29,494, or six-tenths of a cent per share.The Woodstock, Ga.-based company said that the decrease comes from losing a substantial portion of business from a major client and the closings of two branch offices. Transport Topics
Anticipation of OPEC Cut Drives Up Oil Prices
Crude oil prices rose Thursday as traders anticipated that the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries would cut production after it meets in January.In New York, crude oil prices for February's delivery rose 71 cents to $26.48 per barrel, while in London, the prices leaped 78 cents to $23.75 per barrel.
OPEC, which produces 40% of the world's oil, has already raised oil production output four times this year, the article said. However, there has been a higher demand for oil this year since the U.S. Northeast, the nation's largest heating oil market, is expected to have a colder-than-normal winter.
But OPEC members, including Iraq, Kuwait, Indonesia and Libya, have decided to meet Jan. 17 to consider cutting output by 1 million barrels of oil per day to prevent a possible glut in the market, the Bloomberg reported. Transport Topics
Whitman, Thompson Seen Accepting Bush Job Offers
Republican sources have said that two GOP governors have accepted top job offers from President-elect Bush.New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman has accepted the post of Environmental Protection Agency administrator, and Bush sources have confirmed that selection, news organizations reported. An official announcement might come Friday.
Gov. Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin has reportedly accepted an offer to head the Department of Health and Human Services, but one report said sources close to Bush had not yet confirmed that the deal was done. Transport Topics
Ice Hits Alabama Interstates While Plains States Shiver
Icy roads in Alabama caused several wrecks Thursday, spurring brief closings of Interstate 20 east of Birmingham and I-65 north of that city, the Associated Press reported.A multiple-car crash caused the I-20 shutdown, while a jackknifed tractor-trailer caused the I-65 closure. The Alabama Department of Transporation said both high-ways have been reopened, but portions of interstates 59, 65, and 759 had some icy patches Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, the upper Plains suffered frigid temperatures, with overnight lows dropping to 19 degrees below zero in Williston and Garrison, ND. In Fargo, wind chills approached 60 degrees below zero, AP said. Transport Topics
Volvo Faces New Challenge After Renault Merger
Even though European and U.S. regulators have cleared the way for car and truck maker Volvo AB (VOLVY) to acquire Renault SA's (13190-PAR) commercial truck unit, Volvo now faces the challenge of selling its piece of rival Swedish truckmaker Scania AB, Bloomberg reported.Volvo got the clearance to purchase Renault's truck division - which includes Mack Trucks - based on the condition that the company sell its 31% stake in Scania by 2003.
However, industry analysts say Volvo should sell Scania within a year because the truck market is declining, according to the article.
So far, Volvo has said that German car maker Volkswagen AG (VOW-FRK), which has a one-third stake in Scania, is talking to Volvo about buying the remainder. Transport Topics
Headlines From Today's A.M. Briefing
- PNV Files for Reorganization Protection
- 3Q Gross Domestic Product Shows Slowdown
- Toyota May Build Diesel Engines in South
- CNF Expects 4Q Earnings to Fall Near Forecasts
- Volvo Prepared to Cut Truck Production
- President-Elect Bush to Resign as Texas Governor
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