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To: flatsville who wrote (39711)	2/11/2000 7:54:00 AM
From: clochard	Respond to of 99985

Haven't you seen the commercial on TV? Those truckers are now day traders! They drive only when they feel like it, for example when they are back visiting from their island getaways.

To: flatsville who wrote (39711)	2/11/2000 9:33:00 AM
From: donald sew	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99985

Flatsville, >>>>> In an interview a regional trucking broker claimed that another month of this would put him out of business and his truckers would have problems with making payments on their rigs. This leaves me wondering why they haven't just jacked-up their rates accordingly so they can run at a profit? Why they've decided to let the inflation buck stop with them so to speak? <<<< I use to be in the transportation biz, and had much exposure to the trucking industry. The problem with increasing rates is that many of the rates are locked up in contracts which normally lasts 1 year. This does not mean that all traffic is locked up in contracts but that the contracts makes it very difficult to raise rates for the non-contract biz. Lets say that I had negotiated a rate for 25,000 containers to move at a certain rate, and I fulfilled my contract. The amount above 25,000 can then be charged the higher rates. Guess what, if the trucking company said to me that I had to pay higher rates I would go elsewhere. Can they afford to take the chance of losing 25,000 containers worth of biz. This keeps the prices low and hard to negotiate. Frankly, I always felt sorry for the truckers when we negotiated, since we always had the advantage over them and we knew it. seeya

To: flatsville who wrote (39711)	2/17/2000 6:25:00 AM
From: Elsewhere	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 99985

flatsville, Here in the upper Midwest independent truckers are taking small 10k and 20k loans and just parking their trucks rather than break even or run them at a loss. Good observation. One week later the WSJ has a story on it: The Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition February 17, 2000 Major Business News Truckers Protest Higher Fuel Costs, Inability to Pass Increase to Customers By DANIEL MACHALABA, Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Some independent truck drivers are parking their rigs and refusing to haul cargo as a protest against sharply rising diesel-fuel prices and their own inability to pass along the higher costs to customers. So far, the protests have been most active in parts of the East where fuel prices have gone up the most. In New England, for example, diesel prices have doubled in recent months to more than $2 a gallon. The truck drivers are clamoring for government action to drive down the fuel charges and for truck customers to agree to pay higher rates to the drivers. interactive.wsj.com