A backup of barges on the Mississippi River in November of 2022. (Rory Doyle/Bloomberg News) The cost to transport America’s harvest from the Midwest to the rest of the world is soaring as shrinking water levels on the Mississippi River drive up barge freight rates — and the forecast for below-than-average rainfall offers no relief. ...more
Tail section of a UPS cargo jet. (Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg News) UPS Inc. is offering a voluntary severance package for 167 pilots amid a slump in air freight volume. “As part of our effort to efficiently manage our airline, we are offering a voluntary separation benefit to eligible UPS pilots,” UPS said in a statement. The ...more
Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin says China's practices are "not competition, that’s an economic disease eating into our communities.” (House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party via youtube.com) A bipartisan group of lawmakers joined trucking industry stakeholders at a meeting hosted by a U.S. trailer manufacturer to dissect what they view as ongoing, unfair trade ...more
Eaton headquarters in Dublin. The company is merging its Vehicle Group and eMobility unit. (Eaton Corp.) Eaton Corp. is preparing for the gradual transition of heavy-duty trucking away from diesel engines by integrating two segments of its operations, and ramping up production of transmission and brake systems needed for trucks using alternative fuels, according to ...more
Workers build a Ford Focus on the assembly line at Ford Motor Co.'s Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images via Bloomberg News) The Biden administration is making up to $12 billion available for automakers to retrofit their facilities to make electric vehicles and hybrids. The funding comes amid tense negotiations between Detroit ...more
A cargo ship waits on Gatun Lake for its transit through the Panama Canal. The U.S. is the main source of traffic, with close to 72.1% of cargo passing through the canal either originating from or arriving at a U.S. port. (Arnulfo Franco/Associated Press) Panama Canal officials say limiting how many ships can go through ...more
Shoppers at a Buffalo Grove, Ill., store. Economist Rajeev Dhawan forecasts job growth to turn mildly negative in the first half of 2024. (Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press) Higher interest rates will significantly slow inflation and the overall U.S. economy during the remainder of 2023 and into 2024, before the Federal Reserve reverses course and cuts ...more
A portion of Interstate 275 is flooded near Tampa, Fla., as Hurricane Idalia bears down on the Big Bend region of the state the morning of Aug. 30. (Florida Department of Transportation via Associated Press) CEDAR KEY, Fla. — Hurricane Idalia made landfall Aug. 30 in Florida as a Category 3 storm and unleashed devastation ...more
Miles traveled by American motorists in the first half of 2023 increased 2.3% from the same period a year ago. (LM Otero/Associated Press) Traffic fatalities declined by an estimated 3% during the first six months of 2023 while miles traveled by American motorists increased 2.3% across the same period of time, a new report found. ...more
A worker prepares materials and construction parts at the Boeing Interiors Responsibility Center in North Charleston, S.C., on May 31. (Gavin McIntyre/The Post and Courier via AP, Pool, File) WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy expanded at a 2.1% annual pace from April through June, showing continued resilience in the face of higher borrowing costs for ...more
