Selected COVID-19 and trucking industry news that may impact your business.
As of May 19, 2020:
CVSA’s Operation Safe Driver Week to proceed as scheduled July 12-18
The Trucker
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) 2020 Operation Safe Driver Week will go on as scheduled, July 12-18, according to a May 12 statement. During the weeklong traffic-enforcement safety initiative, law-enforcement personnel throughout North America will be looking for drivers who are engaging in unsafe driving behaviors. Identified drivers will be pulled over by law enforcement and may be issued a warning or citation. Read More
Texas, North Carolina, Arizona see rising cases as they reopen
The Hill
Texas, North Carolina and Arizona are among the states seeing rising numbers of coronavirus cases, intensifying concerns as they seek to reopen shuttered economies. Read More
Why COVID-19 rebound hopes are weighing down tanker stocks
American Shipper
It was a huge day for U.S. stocks, with the Dow surging by over 900 points on news of a potential vaccine breakthrough and positive stimulus comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Many shipping stocks, particularly dry bulk stocks, showed strong gains, with Star Bulk (NASDAQ: SBLK) jumping 15%, Eagle Bulk (NASDAQ: EGLE) up 13%, Scorpio Bulkers (NYSE: SALT) 9%, Golden Ocean (NASDAQ: GOGL) 8% and Genco (NYSE: GNK) 7%. But tanker stocks were conspicuously absent from the party. Read More
Ports of Tacoma and Seattle see 23.5% volume drop
American Shipper
The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) handled 247,675 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in April, a 23.5% year-over-year decline in total container volume. “The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt the global supply chain,” NWSA CEO John Wolfe said during a press conference Monday. Read More
J.D. Power reports disconnect between auction, retail used channels in April
Trucks, Parts, Service
The used Class 8 auction and retail markets experienced opposite changes to volume and pricing during the first full month of the economic shutdown, J.D. Power reported Monday in its May 2020 Commercial Truck Guidelines industry report. Read More
Ford and 3M Shipping Respirators, Washable Gowns
Work Truck
The first Ford-built powered air-purifying respirators, developed in close collaboration with 3M, are on their way to help protect health care workers fighting COVID-19. Read More