Wednesday, March 7, 2012

The economy continues to recover

Given that transportation more than 10% of the national GDP, it’s no surprise that as we continue to see trucking rise, the economy is rising with it. Manufactured goods as well as petroleum and coal are on the rise. Unfortunately, nothing so far this year has been consistent. January new orders for manufactured durable goods declined 3.7%, and new orders for nondurable goods rose 1.3%. Flatter rates indicate a sluggish economy and adequate capacity. Fuel costs have risen, but total spending does not seem to reflect this increase, and some think this has to do with fuel rising. Some experts conclude that carriers have eased up on base rates to compensate for higher fuel charges.
So although transportation and the economy are on their steady path to recovery, an immediate turnaround is unlikely. Unemployment is dropping but consumers are still spending their biggest share of their paychecks on necessities. We can only hope that transportation will continue to rise despite the cost of fuel and will continue to help grow the over economy.

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