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For-hire carriers added 5,100 new jobs last month, making December the fourth consecutive month in which trucking industry job growth has been positive after slumping late in the summer.

Retail diesel prices ended six weeks of declines by rising last week for the first time since late November, the Department of Energy reported, as fleet managers said they were bracing for the possible return of $4-a-gallon fuel.

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Clean Energy Fuels Corp. has unveiled a plan for the first phase of 150 new natural gas fueling stations, and said it anticipates opening 70 stations in 33 states by the end of the year.

U.S. weekly intermodal traffic fell 9.3% from a year ago, the Association of American Railroads reported.

Consumer confidence climbed this month to its highest level in eight months, according to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index released Friday.

The U.S. trade deficit expanded by 10.4% in November as exports declined to a four-month low, the Commerce Department said Friday.

Ryder System said it has signed its first leasing agreement under its “Flex-to-Green” program, which offers companies the option to incorporate alternative fuel vehicles into their fleets.

Hostess Brands, the maker of Twinkies snack cakes and Wonder bread, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday, less than three years after completing an earlier restructuring.