Wall Street 'risk off' selling has barely begun: NYSE trader

Yahoo Finance's Alexis Christoforous is joined by Keith Bliss of Cuttone and Co. to discuss the Trump-Comey crisis. Keith points out that despite stocks and Treasury yields being down significantly on the day the scandal broke, we haven't yet seen a lot of conviction as evidenced by volume. In other words, a lot of investors are sitting on the sidelines right now riding out the initial firestorm. If they decide to sell as evidence of a felony grows, stocks will trade much lower, and the "safety trade" will ignite.

Virginia Trucking Company Execs Pleaded Guilty to Conspiracy Charges

As part of a plea bargain, Virginia-based Beam Brothers Trucking and its owners and top officers have pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in a case alleging that Beam Bros knowingly committed offences against the U.S. and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations, according to a report in News Leader.com.

BBT is one of the largest contract carriers of mail for the U.S. Postal Service. It was accused of defrauding the U.S. by “impeding the lawful government functions of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Department of Labor and USPS."

Owners Gerald and Garland Beam (CEO/president and vice president, respectively), along with Operations Manager Shaun Beam and CFO Nickolas Kozel, pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of conspiracy knowingly violate highway safety regulations, according to TV station WHSV. The company pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, falsification of records in contemplation of a federal matter. Beam Brothers Holding, the parent company of Beam Brothers Trucking, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Originally the company and its owners and management were charged with conspiracy, falsifying records, false statements, wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy related to hours of service and labor violations in a 126-count indictment.

The company faces more than $3 million in fines. BBT must pay a fine of $250,000, pay back $2 million in fraudulently obtained proceeds, and $1 million in restitution to drivers who were not properly paid. The four senior officers at the company pleaded guilty to misdemeanor conspiracy charges.

Over a 10-year period USPS paid BBT more than half a billion dollars. From June 1999 to March 2017, the company and its principals made trip schedules that violated hours of service regulations and falsified driver logs to ...Read the rest of this story

Iowa 80 Co-Owner Carolyn Moon Dead at 81

Carolyn Cusac Moon, who owned the Iowa 80 Truckstop with her husband Bill Moon, has died at age 81.

The Moons moved to Kansas City in 1965 to operate the Iowa 80 Truckstop in Walcott, Iowa, where Carolyn served as the chairman of the board and chief information officer until December 2016. Bill Moon died in 1992.

Today, after 28 expansions and remodels, Iowa 80 is overseen by the second generation of the Moon Family, and is part of the Iowa 80 Group, which owns several other truckstops and trucking-related service businesses.

Carolyn Moon was recognized as an early pioneer for women in the field of computer programming and graduated from Southwest Missouri State University with a degree in Mathematics in 1957. She was recruited to work for Lockheed Aircraft in California as a computer programmer and later worked at Boeing in Wichita, Kansas, as an engineering programmer, the only woman in the department at the time. While there she programmed mainframe computers and worked on engineering problems, mainly for the B-52 bomber.

Moon was an active member of the American Association of University Women in Davenport, Iowa, serving as treasurer. She was a founding member of the Natso truckstop and travel plaza organization, winning the group's Distinguished Member Award in 2003. She was awarded the Iowa Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2000 from Ernst and Young and was inducted with her husband into the Business Hall of Fame by Junior Achievement of the Heartland.

Moon is survived by her son Will Moon, daughters Delia Meier and Carolyn Jill Moon, and grandchildren Bill Moon, Ben Moon, Sarah Moon, Nell Meier, Lee Meier, Lana Meier, Alexandra Seehuus, Abby Seehuus, Miriam Maikon, and Sarah Maikon.

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Volvo Tests Self-Driving Refuse Truck in Urban Environment

Photo: Volvo Group

Volvo Group is working with Swedish waste and recycling company Renova to test an autonomous, self-driving refuse truck in an urban environment.

The project will explore how an autonomous refuse truck can be used in a busy environment to improve traffic safety, working conditions and reduce environmental impact.

“There is amazing potential to transform the swift pace of technical developments in automation into practical benefits for customers and, more broadly, society in general,” said Lars Stenqvist, chief technology officer, Volvo Group. “Our self-driving refuse truck is leading the way in this field globally, and one of several exciting autonomous innovations we are working with right now.”

Volvo's autonomous refuse truck is designed to make driving safer in built-up areas and while backing up. Sensors on the vehicle will monitor the vicinity and stop the truck immediately if an obstacle suddenly appears in its path. The route is pre-programmed and the truck drives itself to each location.

The driver, who walks ahead of the vehicle, can focus on refuse collection and does not have to climb in and out of the cab every time the truck moves to a new collection bin.The autonomous truck also offers environmental benefits, according to Volvo. Gearchanging, steering and speed are constantly adjusted for low fuel consumption and emissions.

“One important benefit of the new technology is a reduction in the risk of occupational injuries, such as wear in knee joints – otherwise a common ailment among staff working with refuse collection,” said Stenqvist.

The joint project with Renova will continue through the end of 2017. The autonomous truck is fitted with a sensor system for identification, navigation and monitoring of the vehicle's vicinity. Most of the technology is also used in Volvo's autonomous mining truck that the company unveiled in 2016. The mining truck is undergoing tests in the ...Read the rest of this story

International Trucks opens flagship Used Truck Center

International Truck announced the grand opening of the new flagship Used Truck Center in Melrose Park, IL.

While the current Used Truck Center is also located in Melrose Park, the four block move will bring it in the same building as Navistar's Melrose Park Plant; occupying previously unused space on the land. In addition, it will finish off a consolidation effort which brings engine testing, the Used Truck Reconditioning Center, certified technicians and used truck sales all in a single location.

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