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Cornerstone National Sales Meeting Held in Memphis
 | | CEO / Chairman Rick Rodell and President Tim Clay Address Audience |
Sales representatives poured into Memphis from across the country to attend Cornerstone's National Sales Meeting & Dinner held January 11. Multiple topics were covered in presentations given by President Tim Clay, CFO Pat Nieman and Network Manager Mike Cathcart. Special highlights included presentations from the Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, and CSX Railroads.
All in attendance felt the very successful meeting was the perfect way to kick off a new year.
"I wanted to thank all of you for attending our sales meeting," said CEO/Chairman Rick Rodell. "I also appreciate the many, favorable comments concerning the meeting and felt, as well, that it was informative and beneficial."
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3 More Unions Ratify Agreements With Freight RR's
One Union Remains Without Settlement
The nation's largest freight railroads are in national (multi-employer) bargaining with 13 major unions representing 132,200 rail employees. The carriers have reached agreements with 12 of the unions, 10 of which have been ratified. Two other unions have reached tentative agreements that are still in the ratification process. The only union without a settlement, the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes (BMWE), has agreed with the railroads to extend the "cooling off" period until February 8, 2012, eliminating the immediate threat of a national rail strike. The BMWE represents approximately 25,000 employees in bargaining. The railroads are making every effort to reach an agreement with the BMWE by February 8.
Source: National Railway Labor Conference (NRLC)
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U.S. Cargo Theft Hits Record High
The incidence of cargo theft in the U.S. reached a record high last year but the value of the cargo stolen in each incident dropped, according to FreightWatch International, a logistics security services provider.
FreightWatch recorded 974 cargo theft incidents in 2011, with an average value of $319,000 per theft incident, according to the company's annual U.S. report.
In North America, the highest theft risks are around Miami, Los Angeles, Atlanta, the New York metropolitan area, Toronto and anywhere along the Mexican border, according to cargo insurance specialists at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty.
While the rate of theft continued to rise last year, the average value per incident began to decline. "This shows that shippers and the industry as a whole is beginning to secure their high value cargo more effectively, forcing criminals to target less valuable loads," said FreightWatch CEO Barry Conlon.
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Transportation Industry News
Port Tracker Expects US Imports to Rise in Spring, Truckload Carriers Eye Increase in Driver Pay, NS RR First Double Stack Train Travels Heartland Connector, Port of LA Reach Record for 2nd Straight Year,
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Industry News |
Import volume through major U.S. container ports should be nearly flat in January before rising this spring, the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates said in their monthly Global Port Tracker report.
"We're headed into the slow season for cargo shipments, but forecasts indicate that retailers will be stocking up this spring in anticipation of a moderate recovery as the year progresses," said Jonathan Gold, NRF vice president for supply chain and customs policy. "Cargo volume doesn't translate directly into sales volume, but when retailers import more it's because they expect to sell more."
Truckload carriers struggling to find and keep drivers are increasingly convinced driver pay needs to increase significantly, Transport Capital Partners said. A growing number of carriers, 65 percent, said driver pay must rise above $60,000 a year. That's up from 49 percent of the carriers surveyed the previous quarter. About 45 percent said pay would have to rise to the $60,000 to $70,000 annual range. That would be a significant bump in compensation. Tractor-trailer drivers are paid about $39,500 annually on average, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Unemployment "has particularly impacted the construction industry, a historical driver source, but drivers are still scarce," said Lana Batts, TCP partner. Shippers would be expected to foot some of that increased compensation. Rising labor costs are likely to be a prime factor in higher truckload rates in 2012.
On Jan. 15, Norfolk Southern Railway, the Ohio Rail Development Commission (ORDC), Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana Council of Governments and Ohio Department of Transportation marked the first double-stack intermodal train to travel along the new Heartland Connector between Cincinnati and Columbus. The first train culminated a $6.1 million effort to upgrade the rail line, which will provide "substantial" benefits to shippers and the general public, the parties said in a joint statement.
The Port of Los Angeles said its exports surged 14.5% last year, a second straight record. Imports rose 2.3% from 2010, to 4.07 million twenty-foot equivalent units, while exports totaled 2.11 million TEUs for the year.
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Fuel Prices
The Energy Information Administration reports U.S. On-Highway Diesel Fuel Prices (dollars per gallon) every week.
1/16/12 Date Released
3.854 Average Retail Price
0.026 (Up) Change From Week Ago
0.447 (Up) Change From Year Ago
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