Fleet Management

The latest measure of strength in the overall U.S. economy shows it maintained its momentum in the third quarter of the year. A separate report shows a big decline in existing home sales for the second straight month.

Tags: Economy, GDP, Home Sales, Gross Domestic Product

It's looking like a good Christmas for Navistar and FedEx. The truck and engine maker managed to cut back on its losses in its most recent fiscal quarter and likely no longer will have an SEC investigation hanging over its head. Meanwhile, FedEx saw better earnings due to record holiday business.

Tags: Economy, Navistar, Earnings, FedEx, FedEx Freight, FedEx Ground, FedEx Express

The U.S. Federal Reserve’s Open Market Committee on Wednesday decided to push short-term interest rates higher for the first time since 2006.

Tags: Federal Reserve, Interest Rates, Economy

Economic reports Wednesday morning ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee didn't offer a clear picture on the state of the economy, with slower manufacturing growth but a boost in housing numbers.

Tags: Economy, Industrial Production, Manufacturing, Consumer Prices, Housing Starts, Federal Reserve

Both retail sales and prices at the wholesale level rose the most in months during November, according to two separate economic reports released on Friday. These will join other numbers that will be considered in a few days when the Federal Reserve considers an interest rate hike.

Tags: Economy, Retail Sales, Wholesale Prices, Federal Reserve, Producer Prices

A measure of the amount of freight moved by for-hire transportation in the U.S. rebounded following a one-month decline, according to new U.S. Transportation Department figures.

Tags: Economy, Freight, Freight Index

The U.S. economy continued adding jobs in November as trucking employment turned around from the month before, while a separate report on manufacturing was only somewhat positive for the industry.

Tags: Economy, Unemployment, Manufacturing, Factory Orders, Employment, Factory Shipments

A closely watched gauge of activity within the nation’s manufacturing sector shows it not only declined for the fifth straight month, but also that activity contracted during November for the first time in three years, according to the nation’s supply executives.

Tags: Canada, Economy, Industrial Production, Durable Goods, Manufacturing

Third-quarter GDP numbers fuel talk that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next month for the first time in many years – despite a disappointing report on manufacturing.

Tags: Economy, GDP, Manufacturing, Gross Domestic Product

A measure of truckload rates moved higher in October from the same time last year, while intermodal rates continued moving lower, according to newly released figures.

Tags: Economy, Intermodal, Cass Intermodal Linehaul Index, Cass Truckload Linehaul Index, Freight Rates

While many of latest numbers on the U.S. economy show it’s performing below where many would like it to be, there is increasing evidence the U.S. Federal Reserve is moving closer to raising short-term interest rates for the first time in years.

Tags: Economy, Interest Rates, Industrial Production, Consumer Prices, Housing Starts, Leading Economic Indicators, Federal Reserve, Home Building

More gloom than boom, but no doom sums up the economic outlook for 2016 presented by FTR economists in the latest State of Freight webinar hosted by the research and analysis firm.

Tags: FTR, Economy

A report on Class 8 freight volumes issued by ACT Research dovetails with other analysis released this week that signals motor carriers are starting to feel the effect of a slowdown in both import/export activity and in domestic manufacturing levels.

Tags: Economy, ACT Research, Freight

While a recent good unemployment report led some to speculate the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates at year-end, new numbers released Friday remind us there's more to the equation.

Tags: Economy, Retail Sales, Unemployment, Consumer Confidence, Wholesale Prices, Employment, Producer Prices

Taken separately, new reports on freight movements in the U.S. on freight volume, shipper spending and even the spot market seem to run almost counter to one another. A deeper dive into the analysis shows why activity has slowed but is not widespread.

Tags: Economy, Spot Freight, Freight Rates, Freight Index, Cass Freight Index, DAT Solutions, DAT North American Freight Index

One truck component supplier moved from a profit to a loss in the third quarter of the year while a natural gas engine provider took on more red ink.

Tags: Economy, Meritor, Earnings, Cummins Westport, Westport

Despite month-to-month variations, third quarter intermodal freight traffic growth of 3.4% was in line with year-to-date results, according to new figures from the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA).

Tags: Canada, Economy, Railroads, Intermodal, Freight

XPO Logistics, which closed this week on its purchase of Con-Way Inc., reported more revenue but a bigger loss in its third-quarter earnings report, while the mainly truckload fleet USA Truck showed a smaller profit.

Tags: Economy, USA Truck, Con-way Inc., XPO Logistics, Fleet Earnings

Economic activity in the nation’s manufacturing may finally be gaining some momentum after some declines, according to two new reports.

Tags: Economy, Manufacturing, Construction Spending

More trucking companies have released their third quarter financial earnings, showing improvements from a year earlier or at least maintaining their ground, despite complaints about the recent freight-hauling environment.

Tags: Celadon Trucking Services, Celadon Group, ABF, YRC Worldwide, YRC Freight, Hub Group, ArcBest Corp., Fleet Earnings, Economy, Old Dominion Freight Line, LTL

The value of freight moved between the U.S. and its neighbors Canada and Mexico fell in August, totaling $92.4 billion, thanks largely to the drop in fuel and oil prices moved by pipeline and vessel.

Tags: Canada, Economy, Cross-Border Trucking, Mexico, Railroads, Freight, Global

Economic growth in the U.S. lost a good portion of its momentum in the third quarter of the year, but the performance still may still be strong enough for the Federal Reserve to push interest rates higher before the year is out.

Tags: Economy, GDP, Federal Reserve, Interest Rates, Inventories

One trucking company serving mainly the less-than-truckload market and another in the truckload sector have both reported lower third quarter earnings.

Tags: Economy, Heartland Express, Saia, Fleet Earnings

A stretch of recently leaner times for at least one part of the nation’s manufacturing sector could be nearing an end, despite a new report showing lower new orders.

Tags: Economy, Durable Goods, Manufacturing, Consumer Sentiment

Sales of newly built, single-family homes fell to their lowest level since last November, while a separate report shows the first improvement in the nation’s manufacturing sector in five months.

Tags: Economy, Home Sales, Manufacturing