Earnings Watch: In Face of EU Antitrust Probe, Daimler Earnings Rise 15%

Photo: David Cullen

Germany's Daimler AG (Ticker symbol DAI), parent of Daimler Trucks North America and Mercedes-Benz Vans USA, reported on July 26 a 15% jump in profit for the second quarter, largely on the strength of its global Mercedes-Benz luxury car business.

That performance was dimmed by recent news that Daimler is among the targets of a probe by the European Union into alleged collusion among automakers.

On July 22, per a report by The New York Times, European antitrust authorities stated they are investigating allegations that Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW colluded illegally to hold down the prices of crucial vehicle technology, including emissions equipment. The alleged acts of collusion began in the mid-1990s and continued until recently, according to a report by the German magazine Der Spiegel.

In addition, earlier this month Munich-based newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported that Germany's federal minister of transport Alexander Dobrindt is investigating whether the exhaust-gas treatment systems of certain diesel-powered cars and vans built by Daimler have been manipulated by illegal software that eliminates emission measurements taken during testing and on the road.

Back to Daimler's financials: The OEM reported that Q2 earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) increased to 3.75 billion Euros ($4.4 billion) from 3.26 billion Euros ($3.8 billion) for the same period the year before.

The Mercedes-Benz Cars division posted a 70% leap in second-quarter EBIT, but in the meantime, profit dropped 13% for the Daimler Trucks business-- the company's second-biggest earnings contributor, according to Bloomberg— and it dropped 11% for its commercial van operation.

From April through June, Daimler sold 822,500 cars and commercial vehicles worldwide (+8%), marking another record for unit sales. The company said contributions to the Group's best-ever unit sales came from all automotive divisions, in particular the records set by Mercedes-Benz Cars (595,200 vehicles, +9%) and Mercedes-Benz Vans (103,400 ...Read the rest of this story

Duke Energy Tackles Truck Idling at N.C. Distribution Facility

Photo via Duke Energy

Duke Energy will be heading a $320,000 project to install a total of 36 electric power outlets for heavy trucks at a distribution center for Merchants Distributors in Hickory, N.C.

Transport refrigeration units at MDI will be able to plug into the power outlets at the facility, allowing vehicles to keep cargo cold without having to run the engine. By running off of shore power, the electrification project will lower exhaust emissions at the facility as well as save money on diesel fuel. Shorepower Technologies will install the power outlets.

Construction is currently underway at the Hickory installation and the project should be operational by this fall. This is Duke Energy's second project in North Carolina using electricity to power trucks instead of idling engines. In May, the company announced a 24-unit project at Big Boy's Truck Stop in the Johnston County town of Kenly. IdleAir is handling that installation and it is expected to be operational in August.

The two electrification projects are part of a 2015 settlement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and environmental groups stemming from a legal case against the company for alleged violations of the Federal Clean Air Act at some of the company's coal-fired power plants in North Carolina. The agreement required the company to spend $4.4 million on environmental projects and donations.

Duke Energy is an electric power holding company serving 7.3 million electric customers in six states in the Southeast and Midwest.

“Most trucks can use electricity to keep cargo cold when not driving,” said Melisa Johns, Duke Energy's vice president, business development. “This project will make that technology available to trucks at MDI's facility – providing cost savings and an environmental benefit to the local community.”

EPA has found that long-duration truck idling results in over 1 billion gallons of wasted ...Read the rest of this story

Truckload Rates Remain Strong Amid Slight Demand Downturn

Among the bright spots mentioned in DAT Solutions' Truckload Rate report are a boost in activity and rates out of the Midwest. Photo: Truckinginfo.com

Truckload rates are staying strong despite a slight fall-off in demand. That's according to a report issued by DAT Solutions, which operates the DAT national network of load boards.

According to the report, the number of available loads on the spot truckload market slipped just 3% during the week ending July 22, better than expected for the middle of July.

Nationally, the overall number of truck posts was up 2% compared to the previous week as demand for capacity stayed solid and prices remained high. Load-to-truck ratios for all three major freight segments fell 5%: the load/truck ratio for vans was 4.8; flatbeds 36.1; and reefers 8.5. Spot van load posts declined 1% and the number of posted trucks increased 2%.

The national average van rate fell 2 cents to $1.81/mile as most major markets saw lower pricing. Los Angeles ($2.18/mile, down 5 cents), Chicago ($2.07/mile, down 2 cents), Houston ($1.80/mile, down 5 cents), and Atlanta ($2.12/mile, down 7 cents) all reflected lower spot truckload prices for outbound van freight. The spot reefer market mirrored vans, as load posts decreased 6% while truck posts were up 11%.

There were some bright spots, including a boost in activity and rates out of the Midwest where fruit and vegetable harvests are coming in. The national average spot reefer rate fell 3 cents to $2.09/mile. Flatbed load posts declined 1% last week while truck posts increased 4%. At $2.18/mile, the national average flatbed rate was 2 cents lower compared to the previous week.

Rates are derived from DAT RateView, which provides real-time reports on prevailing spot market and contract rates, as well as historical rate and capacity trends. All reported rates include fuel surcharges.

Follow ...Read the rest of this story

CargoNet: Cargo Theft Down Significantly in Second Quarter

The average value of each cargo theft event in the second quarter of 2017 was $202,774, according to a new report from CargoNet. Photo: Truckinginfo.com

California remains the nation's hotspot for cargo theft with Texas in second place – but overall, incidents of hijacked loads are down, compared to the same period last year.

That's the word on national cargo theft activity in the second quarter of 2017 from a new CargoNet report based on supply chain intelligence from its nationwide cargo-tracking and anti-theft network.

According to the report, CargoNet logged 296 incidents of cargo theft, trucking vehicle theft, fraud, and other supply chain disruptions in the second quarter of this year. Almost half of the incidents involved theft of cargo, while 58% of the incidents involved theft of a trucking vehicle such as a tractor or semi-trailer. Another 9% of reported incidents were classified as fraud— often involving identity theft, wire fraud, and sometimes cargo theft.

California theft events were down 53% compared to the same period in 2016. Texas also saw a drop of cargo crime reports, which were down 51% year over year. In total, $17.2 million in cargo was stolen from the United States and Canada in the second quarter of this year, down from $35.1 million last year. The average value of each cargo theft event in the second quarter of 2017 was $202,774.

CargoNet's report noted that food and beverage products were the most stolen commodity, but only by a slight margin; household thefts were quite close. A bulk of the household thefts recorded by CargoNet were major appliances. Other major targets were household cleaning supplies, tools, and mixed household goods.

Warehouses were the most common target for cargo theft, but losses in this category dropped 54% compared with last year. Unsecured truck yards followed warehouses, with 22 ...Read the rest of this story

Q&A: TransRisk’s Craig Fuller on Creating a Trucking Futures Exchange

Craig Fuller Photo: TransRisk

Craig Fuller is the CEO and managing director of startup firm TransRisk. The Chattanooga-based tech firm aims to create the first regulated futures exchange based on trucking capacity. The startup venture was founded by Craig Fuller along with a group of transportation, financial technology, and trading exchange executives and it is backed by Hunt Technology Ventures LP.

Fuller is no stranger to trucking or entrepreneurialism. He previously launched two successful businesses that served long-haul operations. Xpress Direct, the surge capacity/on-demand provider of US Xpress, based pricing completely on a proprietary spot market business model. Transfund$/TransCard was a fleet card provider that offered fuel card payment services, combining GPS location and fraud analytics to prevent fuel-fraud; this business was sold to US Bank.

HDT: Can you tell us about the thinking behind setting up TransRisk to develop and launch a trucking futures exchange?

Fuller: Our idea is that a trucking-capacity futures exchange can address rate volatility, which is one of the most significant challenges in freight transportation today. Our exchange will list and trade contracts based on trucking linehaul rates. Shippers, carriers and brokers have no effective way to protect their market exposure on the volatility of spot market pricing. But by leveraging advanced technology to create an exchange to help mitigate the pricing risks, we'll be able to enhance the way participants currently buy and sell trucking capacity.

HDT: Can you back up a bit and explain how a futures exchange, in general, operates?

Fuller: A futures exchange is a place to buy and sell contracts on some kind of commodity. What it amounts to is you are buying or selling a contract to take delivery of something in the future at a set price. The only difference [with TransRisk] is you do not take delivery of the ...Read the rest of this story

Trailer Production up through June

Photo: Tom Berg

Total trailer production was more than 27,000 units in June, and it has increased month over month and year over year, according to an ACT Research report.

Eight out of ten trailer categories posted higher production compared to May's numbers with flatbeds seeing the largest increase. Trailer production was up 6% compared to the previous month and 5% over June 2016.

A jump in build rates and a decrease in backlogs resulted in June closing with a 4.6-month build-to-backlog ration for the entire industry.

“Dry vans have the longest commitment at just over five months, pushing their orderboard horizon to early December,” said Frank Maly, director of commercial vehicle transportation analysis and research at ACT. “We would expect total industry BL/BU to continue to ease through September, before accelerating in response to the upcoming fall order season.”

Related: Trailer Orders Jump 12% In June

Follow @HDTrucking on Twitter

Pirelli Supplier to Open North American Headquarters

TP Commercial Solutions has announced that its new headquarters in San Diego, Calif., will be opened on Sept. 1. The company is is part of Prometeon Tyre Group, the former Pirelli industrial business unit that supplies commercial truck tires and fleet solutions to the global market.

The new HQ for TP Commercial Solutions will assist with its expansion in the U.S. and Canada markets for truck, agricultural, and off road tires, the company said.

“This move gives us a fresh new start and focus to strengthen our premium truck and fleet business for the North American market,” said Alex Vitale, CEO of TP Commercial Solutions. “Moving into our own dedicated headquarters will also enable us to implement our growth strategy throughout North America.”

Related: Pirelli Names Vitale to Head North American Commercial Tire Brand

Follow @HDTrucking on Twitter