Sponsored by

Big Apple Core Gets Pricier for Trucks; Bike Manufacturing Chained to China By Paul Page

New York City's drive to reduce traffic is set to take a heavy toll on truckers. The state-controlled Metropolitan Transportation Authority rolled out the country's first-ever congestion pricing plan, including fees for operating south of Midtown Manhattan that will make one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. for freight deliveries even more costly.

The WSJ Logistics Report's Paul Berger writes the charges for heavy-duty trucks are starting at $21.60 and will rise to $36 in 2031 , adding to the menu of costs and complications that confront truckers and their customers. The fees have broader implications for the trucking sector because other cities, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, are watching New York as they explore their own versions of business-district tolls.

The Trucking Association of New York's Zach Miller expects trucking companies to absorb some of the extra costs but will have to pass on a portion of the fees to customers. Some of those, including restaurants and bars, already operate on thin margins, so prices to their customers will probably get a jolt.

John Luciani of less-than-truckload carrier A. Duie Pyle says the heavy traffic in the region makes pickups and deliveries inefficient. The cost per delivery is also far higher in the city, and it's going to get even higher.

Less-than-truckload carriers are increasingly targeting smaller, infrequent shippers on the spot market. (Journal of Commerce) CONTENT FROM: PENSKE Gain AI. Gain Ground with Penske.

You don't have anything to fear when you know what's coming. Penske's Catalyst AI$(TM)$ is a new tool that combs through billions of data points, allowing you to compare your fleet against similar fleets. You can see exactly how your business is doing, and what you can do to improve. And there's nothing more comforting than that.

Learn More

Number of the Day Manufacturing

Moving bicycle manufacturing from China to the U.S. turns out to be tougher than shifting gears on a busted bike. When Brian Riley opened a bicycle factory in Seymour, Ind., to bring production of his Guardian Bikes brand to the U.S., he couldn't get away from the reality that nearly all the parts still come from China. The WSJ's Natasha Khan reports that most bicycles sold in the U.S. are imported, and China dominates global bicycle manufacturing supply chains.

The entrenched supply chain is one sign of the hurdles that companies face in manufacturing goods in the U.S. Because of costs, moving production to the U.S. isn't a viable option for all bike companies. Premium children's bike maker Prevelo Bikes uses factories in Taiwan, Thailand and Cambodia that have highly specialized, expensive machinery that CEO Jacob Rheuban says couldn't be easily established in the U.S.

President-elect Donald Trump's aides are exploring tariff plans that would be applied to every country but only cover critical imports. (Washington Post) Quotable In Other News

Orders for U.S. manufactured goods fell 0.4% in November and durable goods orders tumbled 1.2%. (WSJ)

A private gauge of China's service activity expanded at a faster clip to close out 2024. (WSJ)

U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel sued President Biden and others over the scuttling of their $14.1 billion tie-up. (WSJ)

ArcelorMittal's South Africa unit is winding down its long-steel products business on high costs and competition from Chinese steel imports. (WSJ)

The Biden administration plans to impose more sanctions targeting Russia's "shadow fleet" of crude tankers. (Reuters)

South Korea's exports to the U.S. rose 10.5% last year [https://www.businesskorea.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=233092#::text=eight%20consecutive%20years.%22-, The%20gap%20between%20South%20Korea%27s%20exports%20to%20China%20and%20the, of%20%2489.405%20billion%20in%202018] while shipments to China declined. (Business Korea)

Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker VinFast plans to double its global production capacity this year. (Nikkei Asia)

Container lines have a record 8.4 million 20-foot containers of vessel capacity on order, raising concerns of potential overcapacity. (Financial Times)

TikTok is extending its e-commerce operation into Mexico to begin an expansion across Latin America. (South China Morning Post)

British property developer Henry Boot and Feldberg Capital are starting a joint venture aimed at industrial and logistics sites in the U.K. (Logistics Manager)

Demand for electric delivery vans in the U.K. was largely static last year. (Motor Transport)

Korea's Air Incheon plans to launch freighter service to the U.S. in July. (The Loadstar)

The U.S. Postal Service resumed accepting mail for Canada following the end of the Canada Post strike last month. $(CTV)$

About Us

Paul Page is editor of WSJ Logistics Report. Reach him at [paul.page@wsj.com].

Follow the WSJ Logistics Report team: @PaulPage , @bylizyoung and @pdberger . Follow the WSJ Logistics Report on X at @WSJLogistics .

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

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 07, 2025 07:06 ET (12:06 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.