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.
Apple’s manufacturing partner Foxconn Technology Group, which assembles Apple’s iPhone product in China, announced on Saturday that it has raised over $213 million for what it described as a “mega-development” in India.
Investors may be starting to come around to the idea that truckload carriers have another year of strong margins ahead of them.
New truck and trailer purchases currently include a 12 percent federal excise tax, adding tens of thousands of dollars to the purchase price. A new coalition is looking to lobby for the repeal of the tax.
Profitability will lag in high growth markets like Brazil and India, but aftersales services in NAFTA and the EU will drive profitability growth.
Despite the temporary end to the government shutdown announced late Friday, the U.S. Census Bureau failed today to release its report on manufacturers’ durable goods shipments, inventories, and orders for the month of December 2018.
As a slew of regulatory and tech changes hit the trucking and freight industries, the businesses that succeed will be the ones that are open to innovation — and surveillance.
The still-high operating ratio came in for criticism while management says it will reveal all on February 11.
Is 60 degrees hot or cold? Is the freight market hot or cold? The answers to both questions depend on perspective.
The numbers that have come out so far are showing few signs that there had been a significant fourth quarter slowdown.
Port’s growing base of automotive and other shippers needs better way to move freight as traffic woes mean Charleston is ‘not as quaint.‘
The company moved up its operating ratio targets on the back of a strong performance in the early days of precision railroading.
One-quarter of carrier respondents to a new survey believe that driver pay will need to approach $100,000 a year before it makes a dent in driver turnover.
Financial transactions within the U.S. maritime sector – including vessel loans and project eligibility – are on hold waiting for an end to the government shutdown.
Lower WTI prices mean slower pipeline construction and more pressure on crude-by-truck.
It was a great quarter for the railroad with revenue growth in all its product lines and increases in both operating and net income.
Covenant Transport (NASDAQ: CVTI) reported record revenue in the fourth quarter, beating analyst projections by $10.72 million. The company announced $272.3 million in total revenue, a 33.9% increase compared to the fourth quarter of 2017.
Heartland continues its strategy of being willing to walk away from revenue if it isn’t profitable and it is showing in the company’s operating ratio.
Demand for trained workers is growing, but few educators know how to teach the fundamentals of logistics as it is practiced today.
For-hire truck tonnage posted its best yearly growth since 1998, but a decline in ATA’s Index at the end of the year indicated some softening.
The combined brokerage expects to do $200 million in revenue this year.
A company that’s been doing it, a company that says it’s going to be doing it and a company that is being affected by others doing it: that was the theme on three calls about precision railroading.
U.S. Xpress Enterprises is selling its interest in its Mexican cross-border operation, but the company is not abandoning the Mexican market, says its CEO.
Industrial production rose at a solid pace to round out 2018, helped by a jump in manufacturing activity during the month. The gain in output in December rounded out the strongest year for the industrial sector since 2010, and eased fears after a string of negative releases from manufacturing.
Just a few months after its CEO expressed some skepticism about the practice, the NAFTA-focused rail company will adopt its principles.
December was a month of growing uncertainty and severe declines in the U.S. financial markets. The only thing that seems to be growing is the level of ambiguity in everyone’s outlook.
In partnership with Slync… There are numerous reasons to be worried about the health of global trade and the goods economy, even though, in our view, a full-on macro-economic recession in the United States is still unlikely.
Surprise fees for practice that reduces congestion at ports and improves driver turns amounts to ‘dirty pool’ on part of the steamship lines.
Plus: Skewering Theresa May, B.C. rail investigations, California clean air program assessment
It’s a long road from the wellhead down to the fuel going into a truck. Who makes money along the way?
Intermodal is about half the business. It saw its volumes decline but overall grew its revenue.
The company’s stock took it on the chin for much of 2018 but the company said it had a strong fourth quarter.
Chicago to Atlanta is holding up around $2/mile net of fuel, while lanes like Los Angeles to Dallas have crashed 40% off their November high.
Analyst Bruce Chan at Stifel praises the reorganization at the company that suffered an accounting scandal and sees the base being laid for future growth.
Airbus (AIR: EURONEXT) broke ground for its new A220 manufacturing facility in Mobile, Alabama on Wednesday. The newest airliner in Airbus’ product line, the A220 is designed to revolutionize the market for 100-150 seat aircraft.
The operating ratio—strong enough in the third quarter that it can be argued it was earth-shaking—weakened slightly but was still ahead of the fourth quarter of 2017.
Simpson talks about legacy transportation companies adapting to change.
The United States is in the midst of a building boom for industrial space as the logistics market struggles to accommodate surging e-commerce demand.
Data on producer prices shows that overall inflation pressure calmed further in December, weighed down again by declines in energy prices. Industry detail showed that trucking rates continued to surge, however, driven by another large gain in long-distance trucking rates.
The market for lumber slowed considerably in the second half of 2018 as the Chinese economy lost momentum and trade disputes with the U.S. persisted.
Dry van rates hit air-pocket last month and lose altitude; but other indicators of freight economy still looking up.
New car sales should remain strong next year, said the National Automobile Dealers Association, but one group is warning of trouble on the horizon.
Economic and freight indicators are mixed, with some suggesting a downturn is coming, but others pointing to continued growth.
Everyone knew the quarter was weaker than it had been. The question is how much. Stock prices have reflected a significant slowdown.
“You don’t want to start a trade war with China for the same reason you don’t fight a land war with Russia: They will ‘out-suffer’ you.”
U.S. Chamber of Commerce president Tom Donohue threw down $25,000 for ideas on how to pay for infrastructure. And told Washington to open back up.
After first saying in November that operating ratio for the year would be flat, a strong December has enabled it to tick up slightly.
A strong economy led to more CO2 emissions from industry and from buildings, offsetting the move away from coal.
Parliament amended the Brexit debate time table and demanded a new plan from Prime Minister Theresa May, making a ‘no deal’ Brexit somewhat less likely.
It’s that time of year; time to look forward and plan for the year. In order to have a better idea of where the economy and industry are headed, we always like to look back and review from where we came and what happened.
The first week of 2019 saw three of America’s largest companies announce revenue expectation reductions, signaling a potential cooling of the U.S. shipping market.
It’s an aggressive push by Deutsche to rebut the suggestion that XPO has serious accounting issues.
The U.S economy added over 300,000 jobs in December, marking the best monthly performance since February and capping the strongest year of hiring since 2015. The strength in job growth in December did not translate to the transportation and logistics sector, however, which was weighed down by job losses among parcel companies.
Supply and purchasing managers look for geopolitical clarity.
Senate confirmation of Patrick Fuchs and Martin Oberman could be catalyst for STB Chairman Ann Begeman to take action on pending shipper proposals.
China announced wide-sweeping changes to its import and export tariffs over the Christmas break; Australia-based expert China-watchers are divided as to Beijing’s motivations and what it might mean for Australia. Photo: Shutterstock.
Count universities among the for-profit and nonprofit organizations that are being reshaped by a certain e-commerce giant.
Freight clearance at border crossing at ports could be susceptible to backups and delays if Washington lawmakers are unable to resolve the funding crisis sooner rather than later.
The formula for the rights offeirng could leave Elliott in control of more than 95% of the company’s outstanding common stock.
Traders look at the ratio between gold and oil. What did it say in 2018?
Manufacturers’ new orders for durable goods posted a modest rebound in November, driven by a surge in aircraft orders. Orders excluding transportation fell for the second time in three months. This is the latest in a string of disappointing releases from manufacturing, raising some questions about the health of one of the key drivers of freight demand headed into next year.
The vote, with one council member abstaining, took place at 1:05 a.m. this morning.
The history books will say many things about 2018, but whatever else is recorded, it will go down as one of the strongest years for spot and contract pricing increases in the history of trucking in the U.S. Will that trend continue?
A pause for industrial real estate after a stellar run, JLL predicts.
Jurupa Valley, CA is building a badly needed truck stop. The locals don’t seem to want it.
Fervent hope and speculation in the West about forthcoming policy announcements by China failed to materialise yesterday in a speech given by China’s President Xi Jinping.
The vision for truck video systems goes beyond reducing one-time accident claims to creating more efficient, less risky fleets.
“The biggest takeaway is we’ve got a systemic labor problem. We don’t see a simple solution.”
Recent results show that retail activity continued to expand in November, in a sign that one of the key components of freight demand remains healthy at the end of the year. Results from the manufacturing sector were far less encouraging however, as activity stalled during the month.
How do you prepare for a seismic event experts predict will unleash the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States?
A number of analysts have stepped forward and issued counterarguments to a negative report on Thursday about XPO, and the company itself has announced a share buyback program.
XPO Logistics has disputed the content of a report from Spruce Point Capital Management, a noted short-seller of stocks, that claims XPO has “perpetuated a massive financial scheme on the public.”
Data on producer prices shows that overall inflation pressure calmed in November, weighed down by declines in gasoline prices. Industry detail showed that trucking rates continues to surge, however, driven by another large gain in long-distance trucking rates.
As barge rates slump in the face of increased rainfall, the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR) has warned that Rhine River water levels could fall again in December.
Preparations by the freight industry to cope with the UK’s exit from the European Union (EU) were thrown into more turmoil by Prime Minister Theresa May’s decision to delay the Brexit debate indefinitely.
Keeping track of a week-long series of events that on the surface should be driving prices higher.
But container volumes still going strong this quarter as U.S.-China hash out deal; but first quarter likely to see slowdown.
With the market data available on SONAR, we have ability to see all the ebbs and flows of freight movement happen in real-time.
Cowen expects softening trucking prices in 2019 to be a headwind for truckload carrier earnings, but should widen gross margins for freight brokerages.
Job growth slowed in November after an impressive gain in the previous month, but signals from wages and unemployment suggest that labor market conditions remain generally healthy. The transportation and logistics industry had another strong month of hiring, with impressive job gains from trucking, parcel, and warehousing companies.
Saudi Arabia and Russia agree on further production cuts to prop up crude prices; Qatar leaves OPEC to focus on nat gas; heavy sweet crudes are trading at a premium in anticipation of IMO 2020.
“I am convinced this transitional stage is going to give us huge opportunities for our country, and we are ready to face them.”
