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John’s Blog
3-15-10
Dear Friends,
The good news from last week is that
consumers found their wallets in February. Retail sales had a 0.3%
increase from January and the 3.9% growth over February 09 according
to the US Census Bureau. Non-store retailers were up 11.8% year over
year showing that on-line shopping continues to grow.
Evidence is mounting that after 3 ½
years of the freight recession that trucks are getting harder to
find. After losing 4,493 trucking companies and a reduction of
between 174,000 and 210,000 trucks from service, it was going to
happen as freight demand picks up.
Internet Truckstop said on March 5th
that truck demand was greater then it had been since September 2008.
This provider of load posting services reported that demand is
greatest in Texas, California, Pennsylvania, Alabama, and parts of
the Midwest.
On the flip side of this growth is the
number of out of work people in the trucking industry. The
Department of Labor reported that total trucking sector employment
fell 1.3% in January showing that trucking companies continue to get
leaner through headcount reduction.
Oil is back in the news as well with
diesel prices rising two cents to $2.924 per gallon. This is the
fourth straight week that diesel prices have risen.
Should you have a supply chain
challenge please reach out to Wagner for fulfillment, distribution
warehousing and transportation services.
We would love to find a way to expand
what we do for you or tackle new projects.
Have a great week,
John
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