°®¶¹´«Ã½

America’s manufacturers are scrambling to change the way they do business — from finding new suppliers to shifting more finishing work overseas — as the sting of tariffs begins to take a bigger toll on their bottom lines.

In an effort to strengthen its position in the growing final-mile trucking sector, J.B. Hunt on Jan. 8 announced it is purchasing Cory 1st Choice °®¶¹´«Ã½ Delivery for $100 million.

Truck driver Justin Osborne pulled up to a house in the Dallas suburbs last month and started unloading an oven, a dishwasher and a microwave. His mission: Help J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. win the battle for new delivery riches spurred by e-commerce.

After a 2018 that saw record-setting levels of freight-hauling demand and driver pay as tonnage levels reached a 20-year high, the trucking industry is expected to remain strong in 2019 but undergo a bit of a cool-down, economists say.

Procrastinators take note: The deadline is fast approaching to get those gifts in the mail to arrive by Christmas Eve.

Virginia’s Commonwealth Transportation Board has approved a plan that weighs the possibility of tolls to address some of the issues that affect Interstate 81.

Delivery companies are warning shoppers to send holiday gifts and make online purchases within the next 10 days as a record number of packages are expected to be delivered.

Swiss freight forwarder Kuehne + Nagel International AG has purchased Quick International Courier, a leading provider of time-critical transportation services, from The Jordan Co., an investment firm that has been on a logistics buying spree over the past couple of years.

Area shoppers will want to purchase their holiday gifts earlier this year, as a major jump in online holiday shopping could complicate the delivery system.