Trucking Business News

About Business News...

Transport Topics business coverage focuses on the financial, economic, and commercial aspects of the modern freight business. Looking at both the microeconomic and macroeconomic forces shaping bottom lines, the news in this category includes labor news, jobs reports, tonnage and sales indicators, operations analysis, money and banking, mergers, acquisitions, e-commerce, bankruptcy, insurance issues, and more.

Business

Shippers Push for Expanded Higher Truck Weight Limits

Some shippers are pushing for higher truck weight limits, following moves by Maine and Vermont to allow oversize loads, Bloomberg reported.

December 12, 2011
Business

Protesters March on West Coast Ports

Protesters from the Occupy movement marched on West Coast ports including in Oakland and Long Beach, Calif., Monday, in an effort to shut down the facilities, news reports said.

December 12, 2011
PerspectiveBusiness

Opinion: Shorepower — Not Just for Boats

The vision is to have almost every truck equipped with shore-power-friendly systems and to have ubiquitous shore power so that anywhere truckers think about idling for any length of time, they have an alternative.

December 12, 2011
Business

Volvo Names New Chairman

Volvo AB named Carl-Henric Svanberg its new chairman, Bloomberg reported Monday.

December 12, 2011
BusinessFuel

Oil Falls to Two-Week Low

Oil fell to near $98 a barrel in early trading Monday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, a two-week low, Bloomberg reported.

December 12, 2011
BusinessTechnology

Fuso Hybrid Powertrain Might Provide Big-Rig Fuel Economy

TOKYO — Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp. is developing a diesel-electric hybrid powertrain for parent Daimler AG’s truck group that could provide the fuel economy gains that have so far been elusive for heavy-duty, over-the-road trucks, the company said.

December 12, 2011
BusinessTechnology

GM, Teijin Aim for Stronger, Lighter Parts

General Motors and Japanese carbon fiber and composites supplier Teijin have teamed up in hopes of producing stronger and lighter parts for GM trucks, cars and crossovers.

December 12, 2011
Business

Truck Orders Drop 21.2%; Decline Is First in 13 Months

Class 8 truck orders in North America dropped 21.2% in November, the first year-over-year decline in 13 months, as the industry recovered from the bruising recession, according to ACT Research Co.

December 12, 2011
Business

FMCSA Agrees to Review Permit Regulation; Hazmat Haulers Say It Excludes Safe Carriers

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has agreed to review a hazardous materials safety permit regulation that several trade organizations said is causing some safe carriers to unfairly lose their eligibility to haul hazmat.

December 12, 2011
BusinessLogistics

National Rail Strike Is Averted As Carriers, Two Unions Settle

Two rail unions settled with carriers on a tentative agreement in the days leading up to a possible Dec. 6 walkout, averting a strike and allowing shippers and fleets to utter a collective sigh of relief.

December 12, 2011