Author Archives: just2bruce

Used truck auction prices plunge as freight market cools

Posted on June 20, 2022 | 2 comments

All of a sudden, it seems, used trucks are losing value. It could be because some truckers are finding the trucking business hard to make a living in right now. Spot rates for cargo have fallen recently. Sometimes they are even below contract rates for recently negotiated contracts.

I think the recession is starting to hit trucking. Inventories of many firms are fully stocked, and if business sales slows these firms won’t need to replenish so fast. Hence less trucking needed.

Some of the hot spots for truckers, like the West Coast ports, are starting to slow down also, so less drayage or off-port hauling is needed. There are just fewer loads available.

It’s a good sign for supply chain congestion, but not so good for those who recently entered the business.

So truckers are selling their rigs more frequently.

It’s not an easy business to make a buck in.

Alan Adler Thursday, June 16, 2022

Used truck auction prices plunge as freight market cools – FreightWaves

2 Comments

Posted in Logistics, Trucking

Tagged , , ,

Low loads double methane slip on LNG carrier voyage

Posted on June 15, 2022 | 1 comment

A study by scientists from Queen Mary University oof London scientists measured methane and CO2 emissions from marine power sources. They instrumented a new LNG carrier (2021 completion), on both the main engines and the generator engines.

Note that generator engine emissions are not considered in monitoring the emissions from a ship, according to current standards.

The methane slip, escape of methane through gaps and orifices in the machinery, was found to be quite low, and the generator engines were found to be the biggest source.

This is a quite new ship and one might expect lower emissions from the latest technology. But the study points to the need for including generator engines in the rules and in the monitoring. Studies on other ships and other voyages would be a good idea, and to their credit, the ship owner, Cheniere, has said it will continue to study emissions from its fleet.

Seatrade logo

Gary Howard | Jun 14, 2022

Low loads double methane slip on LNG carrier voyage

1 Comment

Posted in Logistics, Shipping, Sustainability

Tagged , , , , , ,

How effective was aid to business during COVID-19?

Posted on June 9, 2022 | 1 comment

This podcast moderated by David Wessel of Brookings is very informative. It’s an assessment of the success and failure of several programs of aid to businesses the US government put forth when COVID-19 started to dampen US business activity.

The level of financial support offered to businesses during the pandemic was unprecedented, and clearly kept the decline in consumption less serious than it was feared.

There has been a lot of criticism of these programs, some positive and some negative. It’s important to understand how the programs did work and how they did not. In the future we may be faced with other economic crises and we should know which features worked as intended and which did not, and why not.

It’s a good listen, and there is also a link to a transcript.

How effective was aid to business during COVID-19?

How effective was aid to business during COVID-19?

1 Comment

Posted in Labor Economics, Logistics, Macroeconomics

Tagged , , , , , ,