It's been quite a stretch where motor vehicle news is concerned.
The grim analysis from the National Safety Council (NSC) is perhaps the most startling; that U.S. highway fatalities reached a nine-year high in 2016 with some 40,200 killed.
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...Read the rest of this storyLooking to add valuable management experience and bolster support for its growing customer base, fleet services graphics provider Modagrafics has hired Cary Goldberg as director of operations and appointed Harry Adams as manager of customer operations.
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Ancra International introduced a new addition to its lineup of Retract-A-Roll systems. “Retract-A-Roll 3 system is state-of-the-art in pneumatic roller track systems bringing aircraft technology to your trailers,” according to the company.
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Ray West, a 28-year veteran of the North American transportation industry, has been appointed senior vice president and general manager of TMW Systems' complete portfolio of transportation management solutions, including the TMW.Suite, Innovative IES, TL2000 and TruckMate platforms. These solutions support the daily operations of thousands of for-hire and private fleets, brokers, 3PLs and other transportation businesses.
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A preliminary look at economic conditions in the U.S. manufacturing sector during February shows they improved at a slightly slower pace than the 22-month peak seen during January.
That's according to the Flash U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index released Tuesday by the financial information services provider IHS Markit.
It slipped from a final January reading of 55 to 54.3 this month, a two-month low, due to softer output and new order growth. A reading above 50 indicates manufacturing is expanding.
Despite the drop from last month, new order growth remained faster than at any other time since March 2015, according to the report. This was driven by strong sales to domestic clients, which helped offset weaker growth in export markets during February. A number of manufacturers commented on greater demand from energy sector clients.
Manufacturers also indicated that input cost inflation was at its highest level since September 2014. This was linked to increased prices for a range of raw materials, particularly metals and oil- related inputs. However, factory gate price inflation was only marginal and slipped to a three-month low in February, suggesting a continued squeeze on operating margins for manufacturers.
The drop in the flash PMI numbers for February suggest that the post-election upturn has lost some momentum, according to Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit.
"Even with the February dip, the PMI remains at a level broadly consistent with the economy growing at a 2.5% annualized rate in the first quarter.”
“February also saw a sharp pull-back in business optimism about the outlook over the next 12 months, which suggests companies have become more cautious about spending, investing and hiring,” he said. “However, even with the February dip, the PMI remains at a level broadly consistent with the economy growing at a 2.5% annualized rate in the first quarter.”
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Strong January orders for Class 8 and medium-duty trucks – especially for vocational units – may indicate that the “bottom” of the current truck buying slump may now be firmly in the industry's rear-view mirror, according to Kenny Vieth, president and senior analyst with ACT Research.
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