Government

U.S. retail fuel prices dipped last week, as crude oil costs fell. The Department of Energy said the average price for diesel around the nation was 5 cents a gallon lower at $3.326, while gas slipped 4.1 cents to $3.068.

U.S. consumer confidence rose this month, according to the University of Michigan’s monthly consumer sentiment index released Friday.

An index of leading economic indicators fell 0.2% last month, the New York-based Conference Board said Friday.

Economic activity increased modestly from of mid-November through early January, although demand for transportation services was generally weak, the Federal Reserve said.

Housing starts plunged 14% in December to the lowest level in 17 years, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

Transport Topics Online will be closed Monday, Jan. 19, for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and Tuesday, Jan. 20, due to the presidential inauguration. Please check back on Wednesday, Jan. 21, for the latest trucking and freight transportation news.

I think everyone is becoming tired of the continued drama from the hours-of-service debacle. Does the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration really believe they can reissue the same rules the courts have thrown out twice and they will now be accepted?

The Environmental Protection Agency has completed its draft of new regulations to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions from cars and trucks, Bloomberg reported.

The consumer price index rose 0.3% in December and the CPI for the full year was 4.1%, the highest level since 1990, the Labor Department said Wednesday.

A design flaw in steel plates contributed to the collapse of a bridge in Minneapolis last year that killed 13 people and injured more than 100, Bloomberg reported Tuesday, citing the National Transportation Safety Board.