Mike
Well-Known Member
The independent trucker took a sip of tea and explained there is something far worse than paying record-high fuel prices — having cheaper fuel but nothing to haul.
“Diesel could be 25 cents a gallon, but if there is no freight it might as well be $250,” McLaughlin groused.
That, in a nutshell, is the flipside of crumbling fuel prices.
The steep declines of recent weeks may be a welcome boon for crimped household budgets. But they are another indicator of pervasive economic weakness. Few sectors are as economically sensitive as the transport industries that move products around the country.
The trucking industry has long been considered a reliable early indicator of where the economy is going. If so, we have a rough road ahead.
The U.S. Department of Transportation said the amount of freight shipped in the U.S. dropped 4.3 percent in August and September. An investment banking firm recently reported that 127,000 trucks, or 6.5 percent of the country’s fleet, have been idled. Moreover, 2,609 trucking firms with five or more rigs have failed this year
More: Kansas City Star
“Diesel could be 25 cents a gallon, but if there is no freight it might as well be $250,” McLaughlin groused.
That, in a nutshell, is the flipside of crumbling fuel prices.
The steep declines of recent weeks may be a welcome boon for crimped household budgets. But they are another indicator of pervasive economic weakness. Few sectors are as economically sensitive as the transport industries that move products around the country.
The trucking industry has long been considered a reliable early indicator of where the economy is going. If so, we have a rough road ahead.
The U.S. Department of Transportation said the amount of freight shipped in the U.S. dropped 4.3 percent in August and September. An investment banking firm recently reported that 127,000 trucks, or 6.5 percent of the country’s fleet, have been idled. Moreover, 2,609 trucking firms with five or more rigs have failed this year
More: Kansas City Star
