A pumpjack and oil refinery in West Texas. Fuel use may soar even higher in August. (dszc/Getty Images) Global oil demand has surged to a record amid robust consumption in China and elsewhere, threatening to push prices higher, the International Energy Agency said. World fuel use averaged 103 million barrels a day for the first ...more
A Waymo autonomous taxi in San Francisco on Aug. 10. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg) SAN FRANCISCO — California regulators on Aug. 10 approved an expansion that will allow two rival robotaxi services to operate throughout San Francisco at all hours, despite safety worries spurred by recurring problems with unexpected stops and other erratic behavior that resulted ...more
Navistar's headquarters in Lisle, Ill. The company's International Trucks brand sold 3,039 units in July, a 36.3% increase year-over-year. (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg News) U.S. Class 8 retail sales in July increased 2.5% from a year ago but were down from the prior month, Wards Intelligence reported. Class 8 sales reached 21,021 units, up from 20,513 in ...more
FMCSA's pre-emption decision was upheld in January 2021 by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, supporting the 2018 determination involving California. (Department of Transportation) The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has announced it will accept petitions for waivers from its 2018 and 2020 decisions to pre-empt truck driver meal and rest break law requirements ...more
Yellow Corp. trucks parked at a facility in Hayward, Calif., Aug. 2. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg News) Negotiations between Yellow Corp. and a growing number of parties interested in financing the Nashville, Tenn.-based company’s bankruptcy proceedings are set to continue through Aug. 15. Yellow’s lead bankruptcy attorney, Kirkland & Ellis partner Patrick Nash, told a Delaware ...more
The federal government’s current funding authority is set to expire Oct. 1. (Bloomberg News) Ensuring federal agencies are funded through fiscal 2024 will lead the Senate’s agenda when members return to Washington after the August recess, the chamber’s leader indicated recently. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) emphasized the seriousness with regard to approving fiscal 2024 ...more
One analyst noted that while conditions are still bad, they don’t seem to be getting much worse. (Aziz Shamuratov/Getty Images) The trucking industry reported a weak second quarter with freight volumes and destocking efforts putting downward pressure on demand. “I would say from a quarter perspective, it was bad,” said Wells Fargo analyst Allison Poliniak-Cusic. ...more
Trucks are parked at a Love's Travel Stop in Oklahoma. The company is expected to open a location near Spindale, N.C., in the third quarter of next year. (Love's Travel Stops) A $1.6 million U.S. Department of Commerce grant to a southwestern North Carolina town is paying for new infrastructure to support opening a Love’s ...more
Julie Su speaks during a confirmation hearing. (Alex Brandon/Associated Press) Legislation aimed at preventing an acting head of the Department of Labor from remaining in the job indefinitely was recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Republican Reps. Virginia Foxx and Kevin Kiley unveiled the Department of Labor Succession Act as a way of ...more
Used car prices dropped 5.1% in July from a year earlier to $29,198. (Matt Rourke/AP) WASHINGTON — Inflation in the United States rose in July after 12 straight months of declines, boosted by costlier housing. But excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core inflation matched the smallest monthly increase in nearly two years. The ...more
