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Manufacturing activity in the Chicago area fell in May, the Institute for Supply Management-Chicago said Tuesday.  

Consumer confidence fell in May to a six-month low, the New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday.

Oil rose past $102 a barrel in early trading Tuesday, its highest level in three weeks, as a leak shut a pipeline carrying crude to a U.S. storage hub, Bloomberg reported.

It appears that the time for electric commercial trucks has arrived. After years of an­nouncements promoting concepts and prototypes, several suppliers have introduced battery-electric production models.

BALTIMORE — Fleets that adopt electronic logging devices are encountering challenges from competitors who don’t use them and who poach their drivers and customers, three carrier officials said last week.

Light-emitting diodes, commonly known as LEDs, are a popular aftermarket addition for interior, backup, fog and other lighting needs on large trucks. And, according to several truck makers and their suppliers, they are destined to become, eventually, the headlight of choice for the trucking industry.

BALTIMORE — Nearly all tank  truck carriers can expect a strong 2011 because of solid manufacturing sector growth, though tight capacity and rising costs will make the road to prosperity more challenging, industry experts said.

It was heartening to hear last week from a bipartisan group of heavy-hitters in the U.S. Senate that they were prepared to lead the charge to get a transportation funding bill through Congress.

Freight transportation will grow “significantly” over the next decade, while trucking’s share of that market will rise steadily, according to a new American Trucking Associations report.

Truck tonnage continued its steady growth last month, rising 4.8% above April 2010 volumes, the 17th straight year-over-year gain, American Trucking Associations reported.