°®¶¹´«Ã½

Minutes after UPS sent its stock tumbling with a surprise warning that fourth-quarter profit was cut by surging costs, FedEx took an unusual step.

FedEx Corp. said net income for its fiscal second quarter ended Nov. 30 rose 23% to $616 million, or $2.14 per share, helped by stronger results in the air, ground and freight units.

FedEx Corp. has acquired cross-border, online-purchase technology company Bongo International to enhance its portfolio of e-commerce solutions. Terms were not disclosed.

FedEx Corp. kicked off what it expects to be its busiest day in company history, Dec. 15.

FedEx Freight CEO William Logue, who led the unit back to historical profitability levels, will retire for health reasons Dec. 31, to be succeeded by Michael Ducker, chief operating officer of FedEx Express.

FedEx Freight drivers at the Cinnaminson, New Jersey, terminal have voted against becoming Teamsters in the first-ever unionization vote at the nation’s largest less-than-truckload company, the company said.

FedEx Corp. said a ruling by the Kansas Supreme Court that, under state law, its drivers are employees rather than independent contractors applies to a business practice it hasn’t been using since 2011.

FedEx Corp. reported its fiscal first-quarter net income rose 24% to $606 million, or $2.10 per share, from $489 million, or $1.53, a year ago.

In the latest decision on worker status, a federal appeals court in California ruled that 2,300 workers at FedEx Corp.’s Ground unit were employees and not contractors to the package delivery company.