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Cummins Inc. on Friday announced the appointment of two longtime leaders of its engine unit to run key business operations within that division.

Stock market analysts are cautious about trucking’s earnings prospects for this year after the steady improvement in industry profits that began in 2010 stalled in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Pressure from federal safety regulations and the latest transportation bill is pushing more carriers to make the switch from paper driver logs to electronic logging through in-cab systems, according to fleets and vendors.

Customers ordered 21,300 heavy-duty trucks in North America in December, in line with the full year’s business levels but far below the corresponding month in 2011, ACT Research Co. reported.

Amazon.com said it plans to open a 1-million-square-foot distribution center in New Jersey that it expects will create hundreds of jobs.

Wholesale inventories increased 0.6% in November, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

Private equity firm The Jordan Company said it has acquired American Fast Freight, an ocean freight forwarding company. Terms were not disclosed.

Diesel fuel will average $3.87 a gallon this year, the Department of Energy said, raising a previous forecast by 3 cents.

Initial jobless claims increased by 4,000 last week, the Labor Department said Thursday.