���ϳԹ���

WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy grew at a robust annual rate of 4.2% in the second quarter, the best performance in nearly four years, though economists believe growth has slowed in the current quarter partly because of a drag from trade

WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve signaled its confidence in the U.S. economy Sept. 26 by raising a key interest rate for a third time this year, forecasting another rate hike before year’s end.

American Trucking Associations has petitioned the trucking industry’s top regulator to determine that California’s meal-and-rest-break requirements are pre-empted under federal regulations.

Former Pilot Flying J President Mark Hazelwood was sentenced to 12½ years in prison and fined $750,000 on Sept. 26 for his leadership role in a multimillion-dollar scheme to cheat truckers out of diesel fuel rebates.

Canada is signaling that this week’s NAFTA deadline could come and go without a deal — with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau citing a “range of paths” forward while his U.S. envoy digs in on two issues.

Legislation that would ensure funding for several federal agencies in fiscal 2019, which begins Oct. 1, and keep funding flowing through early December for the rest of the government cleared the U.S. House on Sept. 26.

Buried in a long list of Chinese exports subject to new U.S. tariffs are truck tires — including retreads — as well as chassis. A 10% tariff on the listed items took effect Sept. 24, and will rise to 25% on Jan. 1 if no resolution is reached.

In the absence of a quick fix to increase the number of trucks on the road to keep up with rising freight demand, another option is to find a way to wring out more utilization of the trucks already on the road.

China announced more tariff cuts Sept. 26 on construction machinery and other goods but no action on U.S. complaints about its technology policy that are fueling an escalating trade battle.