Transportation Economy News Updates

A gauge of logistics stress in the U.S. economy eased in April as freight transportation cooled, a sign that the broader economy is downshifting to a speed that remains expansionary.

The U.S. economy shrank for the first time since 2020, reflecting an import surge tied to robust consumer demand. While the surprise contraction adds to political headaches for President Joe Biden, it’s unlikely to dissuade the Federal Reserve from hiking interest rates aggressively to combat inflation.

Real economic activity in the U.S. is slowing sharply. This is showing up in lower demand for new trucks and autos, and a tailing off in freight volumes, leaving transport stocks facing more downside.

NEW YORK — Wall Street pointed toward a higher open on March 22, one day after Chairman Jerome Powell said the Federal Reserve was prepared to raise its benchmark short-term interest rate by a half-point multiple times, if necessary, to battle inflation.

Carriers have struggled to fully capitalize on high demand because of factors suppressing volumes, American Trucking Associations Chief Economist Bob Costello said March 1.

WASHINGTON — The World Bank is downgrading its outlook for the global economy, blaming continuing outbreaks of COVID-19, a reduction in government economic support and ongoing bottlenecks in global supply chains.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy grew at a 2.3% rate in the third quarter, slightly better than previously thought, the Commerce Department said Dec. 22. But prospects for a solid rebound going forward are being clouded by the rapid spread of the latest variant of the coronavirus.

While the pandemic exacerbated weaknesses in the global supply chain, new opportunities for the trucking industry to grow domestically have also been uncovered.

In the nearly two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. economy has been battered and undergone substantial change. Through it all, economists and experts say it has shown remarkable resilience.

Infrastructure issues exacerbated by the pandemic, like kinks in the global supply chain and port congestion, have caused freight costs and delivery times to soar. Consumer demand may be growing but businesses are struggling to keep up and global economic recovery is being hampered.