| The Chart to Watch: Falling Transports Bill Luby submits: For the most part, last week saw some mild negative numbers in most of the major market indices. One particular index that is closely watched by many, however, was particularly hard hit. The Dow Jones Transportation Average ((DJTA)), an essential component of Dow Theory, fell 5.4% for the week and was particularly hard hit on Friday. Before the market opened on Friday, two of the three railroads in the DJTA reported earnings and while the bottom line numbers were impressive, investors were spooked by substantial revenue declines. Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNI) reported a quarterly revenue decline of 27% from the comparable quarter in 2008, while Union Pacific (UNP) reported a 24% drop in revenues for the same period. The weak revenue picture helped to push the DJTA to a loss of 3.5% on Friday and create what looks for now to be a provisional double top in the index in the chart of the week below.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Dreamliner Flies: Report from the Scene Larry Dignan (ZDNet) submits: Despite the gray skies, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner left the ground at 10:27 a.m. PT Tuesday on its maiden flight. Smart Planet’s John Dodge was there and provided these photos of the event. Here’s Dodge’s recap on Smart Planet and Twitter.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Transportation Legislation: For Whom the Bells Are Tolling Ryan Avent submits: The big obstacle to passing a new, comprehensive transportation bill is the lack of agreement over a source of financing. The traditional source of funding for federal transportation programs is the gas tax, which, as we all know, hasn’t been increased since 1993, which means its real value has fallen considerably. And, it seems to be taken as given that any new increase is unthinkable, although I’m not sure why. Of course, there are other potential funding sources out there, like, say, tolling. But:During a discussion on the massive financing gap that is bogging down the next transport bill, Oberstar also pooh-poohed the prospects of tolling interstate highways built during the road program’s postwar heyday. Pennsylvania is currently pushing for federal approval to add tolls to an existing interstate.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Weekly Rail Report a Positive Note Amidst Gloom and Doom Robert Loftus submits:The weekly rail report, which is published by the Association of American Railroads, offers some reassurance after Thursday's waves of bad news. When the numbers in the rail report are growing, it means that more material is moving through the economy, and real economic growth is taking place. The most recent report, for the week ending May 15th, 2010 shows significant YOY increases in the majority of traffic sectors. The report compares car-loads originated in various commodity categories to the number of car-loads originated in that same category during the same week of the previous year. The highlights of the most recent report include a 140.9% increase in shipment of metallic ores and a 49% increase in shipments of coke. Increased shipments of these products may be a sign of American metals producers preparing for a boost in production amidst expectations of massive electricity rate increases for Chinese metals producers.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Why It's Getting Harder to Be a Clueless Consumer Rick Newman submits:The nanny state has been getting a few things right. American consumers hate being told what to do, and to prove it, we routinely make choices that are irrational and counterproductive. We make impulse purchases we can't afford. We build bigger houses than we need, chaining ourselves to an onerous mortgage for years. We drive rugged, four-wheel-drive vehicles even though we never leave the pavement. We buy Snuggies.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |