News Briefs - Jan. 31
The Latest Headlines:
- DHL Worldwide Acquires Canadian Courier Company
- Freightliner N.C. Plants Vote to Join UAW
- Airborne Improves 4Q Earnings
- Swift Ordered to Pay $11 Million in Accident Judgement, Company Says
- Scania Boosts 4Q Results
- Oil Prices Little Changed on Iraqi Uncertainty
- Snow Confirmed as Treasury Secretary
- Freightliner N.C. Plants Vote to Join UAW
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DHL Worldwide Acquires Canadian Courier Company
DHL Worldwide Express said Friday that it has completed its purchase of Canadian courier firm Mayne Logistics Loomis.Under the DHL Canada name, the newly combined company will become the No. 3 provider of express delivery services in Canada (Click here for related coverage.).
( for the full press release.)
Freightliner N.C. Plants Vote to Join UAW
Workers at two Freightliner LLC plants in North Carolina voted this week to be represented by the United Auto Workers union, the Charlotte Observer reported Friday.Freightliner, the heavy-duty truck unit of DaimlerChrysler AG, employs a total of 3,100 employees at a parts factory in Gastonia, N.C. and a truck-assembly plant in Cleveland, N.C.
A Freightliner spokesman said that no date has been set to begin negotiations with the union at either factory, the Observer reported.
The union is working to organize workers at four other Freightliner factories in region, including a chassis facility in Gaffney, S.C. and bus plant in High Point, N.C., the paper said. Transport Topics
Airborne Improves 4Q Earnings
Airborne Inc., the parent of package delivery company Airborne Express, said Friday that it had net earnings of $12.2 million or 25 cents a share in the fourth quarter of 2002, up from the net income of $2.2 million or 5 cents per share the company posted in the same period during 2001.The company said that it had net earnings of $14.8 million or 31 cents a share during 2002, up from the net loss of $19.5 million or 40 cents per share it reported the previous year.
The company boosted its fourth-quarter revenue to $897 million, up 11.5% from the $805 million the company generated in 2001.
Airborne Inc.’s Airborne Express unit is the third-largest package delivery company behind United Parcel Service Inc. and FedEx Corp. Transport Topics
( for the full press release.)
Swift Ordered to Pay $11 Million in Accident Judgement, Company Says
Truckload carrier Swift Transportation Co. said Friday in a press release that an Arizona Superior Court jury handed it an $11 million judgement in a motor vehicle accident lawsuit.The verdict consists of a $7 million award for compensatory damages and $4 million for punitive damages, the company said.
The Phoenix-based company said its insurer advised it that the punitive damages will not be covered under its insurance policy. Swift said that if its insurer does not pay the whole award, it will use legal remedies to recover the difference.
Swift is ranked No. 13 on the 2002 Transport Topics 100 listing of the largest trucking companies in the United States and Canada. Transport Topics
for the full press release.)
Scania Boosts 4Q Results
Scania AB, the No. 4 truck maker in Europe, said Friday that it boosted its fourth-quarter earnings to $106 million or 52 cents per share from the $1.3 million or 1 cent per share the company earned in same quarter in 2001.The company said that the year turned out slightly better than it had expected, Bloomberg reported.
The Swedish company has been cutting jobs, closing plants and boosting vehicle prices in order to maintain its profitability, Bloomberg said. Transport Topics
Oil Prices Little Changed on Iraqi Uncertainty
With the world waiting for U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to make his presentation to the United Nations about Iraq’s alleged failure to comply with UN resolutions requiring the country to disarm, oil prices remained near two-year highs in trading Friday morning.Crude oil prices floated near two-year highs on the New York Mercantile Exchange, dipping just 15 cents to $33.70 a barrel in electronic trading earlier in the day, Bloomberg said.
Crude oil is distilled down to motor fuels like diesel and gasoline. With oil prices staying well above their usual levels for an extended period of time, consumers have been subjected to rising fuel costs. Oil prices have risen 63% since Jan. 1.
Powell is expected to outline the United States’ case for war in an address to the UN on Feb. 5, Bloomberg said. Traders told the news service that until Powell speaks and gives a better view of the U.S. mindset, oil prices were not likely to change much. Transport Topics
Snow Confirmed as Treasury Secretary
Former CSX Corp. Chairman and President John Snow was confirmed as the nation’s 73rd treasury secretary, the Associated Press reported Friday.The Senate confirmed Snow only after he gave two Democrats assurances he will revisit some controversial proposals before the Treasury Department on pensions, AP said.
Snow was confirmed by a voice vote late Thursday night, AP said. The White House had pushed for the quick vote so he could be on the job Monday morning when President Bush submits his budget proposal to Congress. Many Senators had already left for a three-day weekend when Snow’s confirmation was voted on, AP reported. Transport Topics