Iran's vow to push more trade overland in response to the U.S. sea blockade isn't going according to plan, the WSJ's Benoit Faucon and Hamraz Bayan write. Hundreds of Iranian truck drivers are currently stuck between Iran and Pakistan. They say they are facing worsening bureaucratic hurdles and costs, many caused by their own government.

The same thing is happening at Iran's land borders with Turkey, Turkmenistan and Afghanistan, dealing Tehran a self-inflicted blow and stifling trade. Whereas some Gulf neighbors have found ways to work around the throttling of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's attempts are faltering, sending costs soaring.

The cost of transporting one container from China to Iran costs $12,000 via land routes compared with $3,000 by sea, according to the president of the Iran-China Chamber of Commerce, who estimates the naval blockade would cost $18 billion a year in extra outlays.

-- Yemen's Houthi rebels said they shot down a Saudi F-15 jet fighter in Marib and released video footage showing charred aircraft debris. (WSJ)

-- U.S. commercial crude oil inventories fell by 640,000 barrels to 423.4 million barrels in the week ended Sept. 11, according to the Energy Information Administration. (WSJ)

-- The U.S. House passed legislation giving President Trump new authority to level tariffs and is intended to squeeze the biggest importers of Russian oil and gas. (WSJ)

-- The U.S. is investigating potential cyberattacks on oil and gas tankers. (Bloomberg)

Number of the Day

4.4%

Increase in the average weekly number of intermodal containers and trailers carried on U.S. railroads in August, to nearly 297,000, a new monthly high, according to the Association of American Railroads.

Intermodal

J.B. Hunt Transport Services expects its profit to fall by 5% to 10% in the current quarter as higher costs and fuel prices weigh on its bottom line, the Journal's Connor Hart reports.

Speaking at Morgan Stanley's Laguna Industrials Conference, the logistics company's CFO, Brad Delco, said the increased costs stem from strong demand, particularly for intermodal services, which has prompted the company to ramp up hiring, implement sign-on bonuses and institute raises. Costs tied to recruitment, advertising, onboarding and training are expected to be roughly $25 million higher in the third quarter than they were in the second quarter, Delco said.

At the same time, surging fuel prices-with diesel hitting all time highs-are also pressuring earnings. Looking further ahead, however, Delco said the near-term earnings hit will set J.B. Hunt up for longer-term growth.

"Driver costs are going up, fuel prices are high, and it's really tough to find capacity."Brad Delco, CFO of J.B. Hunt Transport Services

Economy

Sales at U.S. retailers rebounded in August from a decrease in July, the WSJ's Jessica Coacci reports. Retailers' sales rose by 1.2% last month to $773.9 billion, versus the 0.5% decrease recorded in July, the Commerce Department said.

Retail sales numbers are recorded in nominal terms and account for the total number of dollars spent. In August, Americans were still paying high prices for gasoline. Outside of gasoline stations, however, sales showed some consumer strength.

Sales in the so-called control-group categories that feed into the formula for gross domestic product-rose rose by about 1.4%. Meanwhile, sales at nonstore retailers rose by 2.6%. Spending in other discretionary categories, such as electronics and appliance stores rose by 1.6%.

In Other News

-- President Trump said allowing Canada to become an associate member of the European Union could be a "hostile act" and threatened additional tariffs on European countries. (WSJ)

-- The next round of trade talks between the U.S. and Mexico will now take place on Sept. 28-29 in Washington, after the nations pushed the meetings back a week. (WSJ)

-- Canadian housing starts fell 0.1% in August to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 229,046 units. (WSJ)

-- Amazon is raising the minimum starting wage for its full-time U.S. front-line workers, who handle tasks including sorting, packing and transporting orders. (WSJ)

-- The U.S. House passed the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, which would require automakers to include AM radio tuners in new vehicles. (WSJ)

-- ExxonMobil is close to signing a preliminary deal to explore investments in Venezuelan oil fields, and Continental Resources signed a tentative agreement with Petróleos de Venezuela to explore an undeveloped oil field. (WSJ)

-- Intel is talking with SK Hynix about the South Korean company manufacturing chips in the U.S. (Reuters)

-- China opened the 134-kilometer Pinglu Canal linking Hengzhou in Guangxi with the Gulf of Tonkin, to ease trade with Southeast Asia. (Lloyd's List)

-- Safety deficiencies were found in more than 10% of cargo units inspected by government authorities last year, according to the World Shipping Council. (gCaptain)

-- Daimler Truck's Freightliner is adding workers at a Mexican factory as it ramps up North American output. (Transport Topics)

-- Hitachi Energy plans to invest $528 million to expand transformer manufacturing in Mississippi. (Clarion Ledger)

About Us

Mark R. Long is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at mark.long@wsj.com. Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team on LinkedIn: Mark R. Long, Liz Young and Paul Berger.

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This article is a text version of a Wall Street Journal newsletter published earlier today.