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Water Cooler Trivia
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NASCAR Trivia
How many members are there in a NASCAR Pit Crew?
3? 5? 7? 9?
If you said 7 you are correct.
There are seven members in a NASCAR pit crew: the front tire changer, the front tire carrier, the rear tire changer, the rear tire carrier, the jack man, the gas man, and the gas catch can man.
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Greetings!
Industry updates are important to all of us. If you would like to receive an update on a topic not listed in this issue or receive more information on Cornerstone Systems, please contact us at 800-278-7677 or visit our website at www.cornerstone-systems.com.
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CEO Rick Rodell Entrepreneur Keynote Speaker
Business Leader's Top Entrepreneurs Honored At Memphis Dinner
 | | CEO / Chairman Rick Rodell |
Business Leader will recognize this year's Top Entrepreneurs in Memphis, February 23, 2012, at TCP Southwind (A PGA Tour Facility). The organization will honor 50 of the top "Up and Coming" entrepreneurs in the Memphis area.
"Keynote speaker Rick Rodell, Cornerstone CEO / Chairman, is a successful, proven entrepreneur" said Business Leaders' Event Editor Bethany Loesch. "It will be educational and inspirational to our audience of honorees and entrepreneurs to hear his story, and the Cornerstone Systems story, and his keys to becoming such a successful entrepreneur. Rick Rodell founded Cornerstone Systems in 1997, and has been CEO of the company ever since. He started out with four people in an empty 5,000 square foot office, and in 15 years has grown the company to achieve revenues reaching over $200 million in 2011".
Top Entrepreneur Awards are given to dynamic and outstanding business professionals who greatly contribute to the growth of their communities. Each winner is a trendsetter and innovator who help revitalize the local economy, create job opportunities and generate strong company revenues.
Business Leader Top Entrepreneurs 2012 Event     |
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Consumer Comfort Rises To Highest Level In Year
Consumer confidence in the U.S. increased for a fourth straight week to reach the highest level in a year as more households believe the economy is improving.
The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index rose to minus 39.8 in the period ended Feb. 12 from minus 41.7 the previous week. It marked just the third time since April 2008 that the gauge has climbed above minus 40, a reading consistent with recessions or their aftermath. The monthly expectations gauge climbed to minus 7 in February, also a 12-month high.
Sentiment among those without a job was the strongest since April 2008, showing news of payroll gains and fewer job cuts is even lifting the spirits of households that have yet to benefit from the recovery. Higher stock prices so far this year may also be giving confidence a boost, helping offset rising fuel prices.
"Rising incomes, a slower pace of firings in the economy and a modest wealth effect due to the near bull market in equities likely combined to create the conditions that sent economic pessimism to its lowest reading in over a year," said Joseph Brusuelas, a senior economist at Bloomberg LP in New York.
Claims for jobless benefits last week unexpectedly dropped to the lowest level in four years, showing the job market is on the mend, figures from the Labor Department showed.
Source: Bloomberg
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Could Fuel Price Spikes Slow Economic Growth?
Diesel and Gas Costs Continue to Rise
Many economists believe the U.S. economy is on firmer footing today, with job growth accelerating and the manufacturing sector strengthening. Lenders are opening up the credit spigot a bit more, and the long-sagging construction sector appears to have turned the corner. However, rising fuel prices could stunt the nation's sluggish economic recovery. Economists say that higher oil prices may have crimped retail sales.
"I think it's one of the biggest risks in the outlook," Gary Schlossberg, senior economist at Wells Capital Management in San Francisco, said of rising fuel costs. "We're in a yellow zone."
Diesel fuel rose for a fourth week, gaining 1.7 cents to $3.96 a gallon, the highest price in almost two months, the Department of Energy said Tuesday. The sixth increase in seven weeks left trucking's main fuel 38.7 cents over the same week last year, DOE said following its weekly survey of filling stations. Diesel has posted a net gain of 17.7 cents in the past seven weeks, following a cumulative drop of 22.7 cents in the six weeks before that. Monday's diesel price is the highest since it was $3,964 on Nov. 28, according to DOE records. Crude oil rose $2.60 on Tuesday to finish the trading day at $105.84 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, Bloomberg reported.
Creeping up steadily over the last month, the national average for a gallon of regular gas hit $3.57 Monday - up from $3.17 a year ago, according to AAA. Prices typically rise in the spring across the country, as suppliers introduce a warm-weather fuel blend that burns cleaner and costs more money.
Analysts are predicting a national average of $4 to $4.25 per gallon by April, which would increase the chances of hitting a record high. The all-time high nationally was in July 2008, when an average gallon of regular unleaded gas sold for $4.11.
International sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program have led to threats that Iran would stop oil shipments to Europe and developing nations. Those threats have contributed to steady increases at the pump this year. The move by Iran on Sunday to cut off its supply to Britain and France may have been priced in, some analysts said. "When people talk about $5 (per) gallon, that's kind of worst-case scenario," said Mike Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research, a consulting firm. "If we don't see (more) cutoffs in Iranian oil supplies, or attacks on oil shipping, we're probably close to a peak now."
Source: Chicago Tribune, Transport Topics, DOE, Bloomberg
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Transportation Industry News
Port of NY-NJ Hit Record Container Traffic in 2011, Port of LA Container Traffic Rises 5%, US Export Growth to China Will Outpace Imports, Teamsters Ramp Up Efforts in Seattle
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Industry News |
Container volume at the Port of New York and New Jersey in 2011 rose nearly 4 percent year-over-year, breaking the annual record set in 2007 before the start of the global economic downturn. The port handled 5.5 million 20-foot equivalent units in 2011, while the port's ExpressRail on-dock rail system also set a new record in 2011, handling 422,144 containers, or 12 percent more than in 2010. Loaded import container in 2011 rose 4 percent year-over-year to 1,562,413 TEUs, while loaded exports increased 6.6 percent to 918,316 TEUs in the same period.
Containerized traffic at the Port of Los Angeles increased more than 5 percent year-over- year in January, as a ramp-up of Asian manufacturing ahead of the annual Chinese New Year celebration boosted exports. Imports increased 5.3 percent and exports were up 5.9 percent compared to January 2011 at the nation's largest container port. Total container volume, including empties and all loaded containers, increased 5.8 percent. The port's container volume in February should be lackluster as factories in Asia slowly reboot from the lunar New Year celebration.
U.S. exports to China will rise at a faster rate than imports during the next five years, aided by an annual increase of nearly 12 percent in automobile exports, according to a HSBC Bank forecast. The report forecasts the value of U.S. exports to China will rise at an annualized rate of 7.1 percent, while imports from China will increase at a 4,3 percent rate. The report also forecasts faster growth of exports than imports in trade with South Korea, Mexico, Canada, Japan, Germany, the U.K. and Italy. Overall U.S. imports and exports are expected to increase at an annual rate of 1.95 percent during the next five years, compared with 3.8 percent trade growth expected for rest of the world. U.S. import-export trade is forecast to accelerate to an annual growth rate of 5.7 percent from 2017 to 2021, while total global trade is expected to grow 6.2 percent in the same period.
The Teamsters union last week ramped up its organizing efforts among port drivers in Seattle with a rally for owner-operators in the harbor area, but the event reportedly had minimal impact on drayage services at the port.
Independent contractor drivers in Seattle have been demonstrating for several weeks, which has led to spot trucking shortages in the harbor. Some drivers have taken off from work to attend hearings in Olympia, the state capital, on legislation that would classify drivers as employees of harbor trucking companies.
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Fuel Prices
The Energy Information Administration reports U.S. On-Highway Diesel Fuel Prices (dollars per gallon) every week.
2/21/12 Date Released
3.960 Average Retail Price
0.017 (Up) Change From Week Ago
0.387 (Up) Change From Year Ago
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