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High High Oil Prices are leading to inflation by increasing shipping costs

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Airline Travel - Southwest Airlines was one of the few US airline companies with the foresight -- and the balance sheet -- to hedge oil prices years ago. Most commercial airline companies... read more 578 views | Related: AirTran Holdings (AAI), AMR (AAR), Continental Airlines (CAL)	Big Three Auto Woes - In recent years, the recurring troubles of the American Big 3 automakers have been coming to a head. General Motors (GM), Ford, and Daimler Chrysler AG face a host of... read more 224 views | Related: American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings (AXL), ArvinMeritor (ARM), BorgWarner (BWA)
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Companies to watch 

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A) is the world's largest aerospace company, operating in over 90 countries and claiming the title of America's largest exporter. Its three divisions... read more 1881 views | Related: Manufacturing, EADS NV (EADSY), Airline Travel	Caterpillar - Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) manufactures heavy-duty vehicles and technologies designed for constructing buildings and mining the earth. Worldwide, Caterpillar is the leading... read more 801 views | Related: Manufacturing, AGCO (AG), Caterpillar (CAT)
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General Electric Company - General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE) is a multinational conglomerate specializing in technology and services. The scale of GE's operations is enormous; in 2006, GE was... read more 2234 views | Related: Commodities Prices, Dow Jones (DJ), Emerging Markets	General Motors - General Motors (NYSE: GM) is the biggest of the Big Three, the ponderous American auto manufacturers who have traditionally dominated the North American market. Like its... read more 1029 views | Related: Big Three Auto Woes, Commodities Prices, DAIMLERCHRYSLER AG (DAI)
Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company - Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company (NYSE: GT) is the world's third largest tire manufacturer with 96 manufacturing facilities in 28 countries. Goodyear... read more 664 views | Related: Bridgestone Corporation (BRDCY), China, Emerging Markets	Harley-Davidson - With half the US market and a third of the global one, Harley-Davidson is the largest manufacturer of heavyweight motorcycles in the world, marketing products under the... read more 1091 views | Related: Aging Baby Boomers, Harley-Davidson (HOG), Honda Motor Company (HMC)
Honda Motor Company - Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Honda Motor Company (NYSE: HMC) is a leading car and motorcycle manufacturer that specializes in small, simple, fuel efficient... read more 426 views | Related: Aluminum Prices, Big Three Auto Woes, Commodities Prices	JetBlue Airways - JetBlue Airways Co. is a low-cost passenger airline who focuses on delivering an enjoyable, high quality flight experience at an affordable price. Incorporated in 1998,... read more 262 views | Related: American Airlines (AMR), Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL), U.S. Economic Cycles
Lockheed Martin - Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) is the world's largest defense contractor in terms of revenue. Since the September 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Lockheed... read more 764 views | Related: Arms Export Control Act, Boeing Company (BA), Defense spending	Nissan Motor - Japanese automaker Nissan is one of the most profitable automakers in the world, selling over 3.4 million autos worldwide in 2006 and generating over US$ 91 billion of... read more 286 views | Related: Aluminum Prices, Big Three Auto Woes, Biofuels
Public Storage - Public Storage, Inc (NYSE:PSA) is a self-administered and self-managed equity REIT that is the leading company in acquisition, development, ownership and management of... read more 713 views | Related: Public Storage (PSA), Amerco (UHAL), Economy of scale	Southwest Airlines Company - Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) is the 7th largest airline by passengers carried. However, it has consistently outperformed all other airlines as an investment.... read more 554 views | Related: American Airlines (AMR), AMR (AAR), Apogee Technology (ATA)
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United Parcel Service - United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) is the world’s largest small-package carrier, by revenue and by volume. Every day, UPS ships approximately 14 million packages... read more 729 views | Related: E-Commerce, Emerging Markets, FedEx (FDX)	Volkswagen - Volkswagen AG (Public, FRA:VOW) is one of the world's leading automobile manufacturers, employing 300,000 workers and generating annual revenues of around €105 billion.... read more 505 views | Related: Global Climate Change, Labor Unions, Manufacturing

News: 

Diesel: Fuel for Inflation?

"Diesel prices are terrible, and they're not getting any better," the 60-year-old Klass, an independent trucker, said in a cellphone interview as he filled the 240-gallon tank. The final tab: $960.

The average price of diesel fuel has been shooting up even faster than that of gasoline, rising more than 50 cents in barely two months. That is not only squeezing profit out of the trucking business but is also driving up the cost of delivering all kinds of goods to American consumers.  "People talk about gasoline, but it's diesel that puts the goods on the shelves," said James Hughes, an independent trucker

According to the American Trucking Association, trucking accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. freight transportation. Last year, the volume of goods shipped by truck fell 1.5 percent from the previous year, the association said.

Effects of High Oil prices on trucking:

Crude oil for future delivery is traded by the barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange

"If crude stays even at $100 a barrel, then by April or May, gasoline prices have to go up another 40 or 50 cents just to follow seasonal trends and recover the costs of crude that are not being recovered now and get margins back to normal summertime margins," said Lynn D. Westfall, chief economist at Tesoro, a major U.S. refiner.

Fear of inflation

Klass said that a cross-country trip that cost about $550 in 1999 now costs almost four times as much. He said he recently drove from Kent, Wash., to Orlando and paid $1,993.48 for fuel. Klass said his truck gets about six miles a gallon but that he can't afford to buy an auxiliary motor that would help him save fuel by powering air conditioning or heat in the cab when he is parked.  The fuel surcharge that the trucking industry added when prices rose above $1.30 a gallon a few years ago was at the time thought to be "a temporary blip." Now the surcharge is a permanent fixture.

US trucks run on diesel.  But, while US cars dont run on diesel, European drivers use diesel fuel almost exclusively. 

Tesoro's Westfall had a different explanation for the recent run-up in prices, however. He said unusually cold weather in Japan, Europe and the United States had boosted demand for heating oil, which is essentially the same product as diesel.