Private equity and venture capital are major forces consolidating transport & logistics and bringing technology into the industry.
A U.S. trustee has asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to appoint a Chapter 11 trustee to oversee the operations of IPS Worldwide.
Southwest surfed the volatility in petroleum markets and maintained a strong financial position by aggressively hedging jet fuel.
Southwest surfed the volatility in petroleum markets and maintained a strong financial position by aggressively hedging jet fuel.
Investors in search of yield have turned to private equity for sometime now. What’s new is the willingness for seemingly large, risk-averse investment funds to tap into the private equity markets.
Fed downgrades GDP growth projections, cancels rate hikes, stops balance sheet runoff, but “economic fundamentals are strong.”
The BiTA Standards Council has ratified the Alliance’s first data standard in record time. Read about the standard and the foundational framework endorsed by the Council.
FedEx execs counseled patience, but will Wall Street listen?
Covenant Transport is the first enterprise carrier to lower guidance for Q1 on a numbers of headwinds, none of which are macroeconomic—yet.
GT Solutions, a transportation solutions provider based in France, is the latest member of the Blockchain in Transport Alliance (BiTA). BiTA is developing blockchain standards for the global transportation/logistics marketplace.
After posting record earnings for the fourth quarter of 2018, the company is expecting its first quarter earnings to take a hit from lowered demand in the early months of 2019.
Stepping into the system is expected by this economist to be Donald Trump, using emergency powers to halt exports of diesel fuel
Investors are risk-on for Europe, putting money into Italian, Greek, and junk bonds, and equities.
Industrial production rose by a paltry 0.1% in February, restrained by a second consecutive decline in manufacturing activity
International terminal mega-operator, DP World, has announced a solid set of results for 2018. Revenues, earnings before interest taxation depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and net profit all substantially increased last year compared to 2017. Acquisitions and increased box volumes drove revenues and profits. DP World has announced investment plans for 2019.
The Leaf platform allows shippers and carriers to enter into so-called “forward contracts” – the buying and selling of future transportation capacity.
Data on producer prices shows that overall inflation pressure eased further in February, as a gain in goods prices was restrained by the service sector. Industry detail showed that overall trucking rates declined in February, led by the largest decline in long-distance truckload rates in four years.
Revenues are falling at Roadrunner Transportation Systems, but management remains confident the company is heading in the right direction.
Retail sales rebounded in January despite big declines in motor vehicle and gasoline sales. Gains in core sales helped to stabilize the retail sector during the month, erasing much of the decline from December 2018.
Market expert Dean Croke writes about the impact of Daylight Saving Time (DST) on drivers (particularly truckers) and the pros and cons of the energy saving rationale behind DST.
The futures contracts will provide a way for carriers, shippers and third-party logistics providers to hedge their exposure to truckload spot rate volatility.
The FinEst Bay Area has secured a $17 billion financing for the world’s longest undersea tunnel between Finland and Estonia from a large Chinese private equity firm. This is yet another example of the Chinese interest in European infrastructure, a possible extension to their grand OBOR initiative.
Member of THE Alliance is latest ocean carrier to experience financial difficulty amid a still volatile rate environment.
Job growth fell well short of expectations in February, as the economy added the fewest workers to payrolls since 2017. Hiring slumped in several industries during the month, but trucking employment increased for the ninth consecutive month.
“The Marines have embraced this because it saves lives and makes them the most lethal, most effective fighting force the world has ever known.”
Talks between the U.S. and China have made significant progress over the last several weeks, and the two sides appear to be closer to a deal than at any time over the past several months. However, while the restoration of positive trade relations will help the trade outlook, other factors are likely to keep trade growth subdued going forward.
The credit metrics for XPO have weakened but are still good enough for a BB rating.
Asparagus from Mexico and California moves around the world as air cargo from Los Angeles International Airport.
FreightWaves executives discuss how futures mitigate risks facing carriers, shippers and intermediaries in spot trucking market.
Oregon business and philanthropic leader Peter Stott started his first trucking company in 1969.
Exports improve sequentially, raw materials price ease again.
A summary of the key developments in the U.S. economy over the past month and highlighted trends to watch in March.
For the second time in several weeks, Amazon has pulled out of a huge real estate deal many thought was a sure thing.
FreightWaves, Nodal Exchange, DAT and ABInBev hosted the seventh Freight Futures Road Show in St. Louis on Wednesday, February 27. The show introduced transportation and logistics leaders to Trucking Freight Futures.
Owens & Minor is exploring a sale, according to sources reached by Reuters, on the heels of earnings that have disappointed investors.
Growth in the U.S. economy slowed further in the fourth quarter of 2018, but came in well above expectations to round out an impressive year of growth.
Political tensions in the Washington-Beijing bilateral relationship are making the China-based U.S. business community uneasy. Tariffs are being blamed for driving business confidence down, decreasing investment and for re-routing Asia-Pacific supply chains.
Sentiment could be growing for lowering the driver age, but questions linger over safety and wages.
The U.S. trade deficit in goods widened to a record in December 2018 as a sizeable decline in goods exports was paired with a jump in goods imports. This reversed the decline in the deficit from the previous month, and the drop in goods exports sent yearly growth into negative territory for the first time in over two years.
North America On-Highway and Defense softened sequentially, and management thinks the company will make much less money in 2019.
FreightWaves has closed $20 million in Series B funding from large strategic investors including Hearst Ventures, Prologis Ventures, and Revolution Ventures
Expeditors should do well in a softening ocean freight market and a Panalpina deal wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing.
Delay in tariffs comes after a week of talks in Washington with Chinese officials; but the threat certainly good for volumes coming into Seattle.
“We have a lot of reasons to believe 2019 will be our best ever.”
Freight Alley in Chattanooga was the scene on the afternoon of February 21, when executives from FreightWaves, Nodal Exchange, DAT and K-Ratio presented the Trucking Freight Futures roadshow. Trucking Freight Futures debut on the Nodal Exchange on March 29.
The transportation and logistics services company closed out 2018 with the highest quarterly revenue ever reported.
Connecticut truckers say tolling proposal unveiled by new governor would hurt business.
With the completion of the rights offering, the beleaguered carrier has a completely new capital structure.
A solid quarter, year despite decelerating sequential net revenue.
A solid year with more on tap for 2019, Atlas says.
Walmart’s latest earnings report beat analysts expectations today, with e-commerce sales growing by 43 percent during the company’s fourth quarter.
Nothing is certain except death and taxes. And, apparently, vehicle recalls.
The audience in Atlanta was one of the most engaged and informed to date.
Brambles, a supplier of reusable pallets, crates and containers for the supply chain industries, recorded strong revenue growth but its profit was much lower in the first half of its financial year, according to results released to the Australian Stock Exchange.
A new initiative aims to make half of the company’s shipments net zero (emissions) by 2030.
J.B. Hunt has closed its acquisition of Cory 1st Choice Home Delivery, adding the last-mile business to its Final Mile Services Division.
Positive Train Control isn’t just about safety anymore as the railroads revisit how the technology can generate capacity and save money.
The Trucking Freight Futures Road Show rolled into the “Big D” – Dallas! Learn more about Trucking Freight Futures and what participants discussed in Dallas!
Two major agencies see a supply/demand balance that is tightening on the back of steep cuts coming out of OPEC.
There were only ever two good reasons for Amazon to build a headquarters in greater New York City.
The largest Canadian freight brokerage purchased a 3PL concentrated in the Southeastern United States.
Retail sales tumbled by the largest amount in over nine years in December 2018, providing a disappointing end to what was otherwise a strong year for the retail sector. The 2018 holiday season ended up well below expectations, and introduces some fresh concerns about the strength of the economy going forward.
While polls show that more than two-thirds of New Yorkers support the plan, politicians at the state and local level poisoned the relationship, the company suggested.
ODFL spends money on aggressive capex building out its network of service centers and maintaining a low tractor-to-trailer ratio, as well as, increasingly, share buybacks.
Private equity has become the major player in financing the growth of transportation and logistics companies, and venture capital inflows have also accelerated dramatically.
Options are a key hedging tool, because they can require a far smaller initial outlay for a company to protect itself from wild price swings.
Stifel’s head of equity strategy thinks the stock market will be weak for the next decade and that the federal government will default on debt unless it can force access into Chinese markets.
Trading of futures contracts can help market participants minimize their exposure to risk. Freight brokerage K+L Freight has launched a subsidiary, K-Ratio, to help its customers navigate the Trucking Freight Futures market when it launches on March 29.
Financial market executive gives a vote of confidence in the success of the trucking futures market by taking the helm
The twin goals are to address rampant oversupply and pave the way for immediate adoption of interstate commerce once marijuana becomes legal at the federal level.
Railroads – like trucking – will be focusing on solving the Highway Trust Fund problem this year. But could a Green New Deal become a competitive selling point?
Some $726 billion in annual spend on U.S. surface transportation faces daily price swings, but futures aim to mitigate the volatility.
USX shifted its fleet away from over-the-road toward dedicated and lowered its adjusted operating ratio to 92.5%.
Fleets participating in the TCA Profitability Program (TPP) gain access to benchmarking data that can help them improve operations.
Today’s selloff on soft revenue growth guidance went too far, according to Stifel’s Bruce Chan and Susquehanna’s Bascome Majors.
Marten Transport and other public truckload companies could make a good stock investment if historical trends hold, says an analyst from Stephens.
Old Dominion’s operating ratio (OR) improved 520 basis points in the fourth quarter, moving from 83.9 percent to 78.7 percent year-over-year. This is the third quarter in a row the company has posted an OR under 80 percent.
ECHO pivoted away from the spot market and also leaned into LTL.
Werner Enterprises (NASDAQ: WERN) reported strong earnings in the fourth quarter of 2018, posting a diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.77. This topped analyst expectations, with the average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research coming in at $0.68.
FreightWaves, DAT, Nodal Exchange, and K-Ratio pitched trucking freight futures to a diverse group of financial institutions and media and tech companies on Wall Street on Wednesday.
The earnings were accompanied by a strong report from Cowen on the company’s outlook.
Supply chain investments are helping retailers meet the inventory challenges of a growing market, the National Retail Federation (NRF) reported today in its 2019 retail sales forecast.
FreightWaves will live stream each of its Trucking Freight Futures road shows, allowing everyone who participates in the freight market to learn how they can offset their exposure to price swings.
Access to data has improved market transparency, and recent spikes in volatility make the case that transportation costs must be hedged and de-risked.
Saudi energy minister Khalid al-Falih announced on January 26 that the country is raising $426 billion in private sector investments, which will include roughly $36 billion for logistics infrastructure according to Reuters.
Not a gangbusters quarter for Saia or Schneider. But the numbers were strong for both and Merrill Lynch thinks the Schneider stock is undervalued.
Upheaval caused by the U.S.-China trade war has some freight interests uneasy about giving Trump more tariff power.
New orders bounce significantly, raw materials prices fall.
The U.S economy added over 300,000 jobs in January, marking the best monthly performance in nearly a year. Transportation and logistics employment continued to increase at an impressive pace, led by healthy gains in warehousing, parcel and trucking jobs.
The monthly economic roundup is a summary of recent event in the economy and a guide for key trends worth monitoring over the next month.
Debt levels are down and EBITDA coverage for that debt is up as the LTL carrier has a strong year and quarter.
Schneider National (NYSE: SNDR) reported strong earnings again in the fourth quarter, beating analysts’ earnings per share (EPS) estimates of $0.46. The transportation giant posted adjusted diluted EPS of $0.49, up from 2017’s fourth quarter result of $0.33.
Americans have become used to buying fruit and vegetables year-round. But it wasn’t always that way, and improved transportation is the key to year-round produce.
After a day of choppy trading, a consensus seemed to emerge that CHRW was well-positioned to grow net revenues even in a re-balancing freight market.
China has problems that go well beyond U.S. tariffs.
Asset-light transportation manager sees results in-line with expectations, but softer rates coming up ahead.
The company laid out its strategy in an SEC filing in the third quarter, and the fact that it is succeeding was evident in the numbers.
There aren’t too many signs of a slowdown in the class 8 order book, company officials said.
CHRW grew earnings per share by 24%, top line revenue by 4.5%; and net revenues by 13%.
The operating ratio in every trucking segment of the company was improved and its outlook for 2019 is solid also.
