Savannah port handles record freight shipments
The Georgia Ports Authority handled 333,006 twenty-foot equivalent container units (TEUs) in April, an increase of 11.7 percent compared to the same month a year ago. Across all ports, GPA's total tonnage increased by 13 percent to reach 2.94 million tons and the Authority's busiest April ever.
"Savannah has established itself as a premier gateway serving the Eastern United States," said Griff Lynch, GPA's executive director. "Our team is not only keeping pace with record volumes, but has managed to set new industry standards in cargo velocity, berth productivity and congestion free gates."
Lynch cited the recent visit of the COSCO Development, the first 13,000-TEU vessel to call the U.S. East Coast, as an example. During the 30 hours the vessel was in dock, six cranes moved more than 9,700 TEUs on and off the vessel, with a net berth productivity of 220 boxes per hour.
In the first four months of 2017, total shipments at the Savannah port were up 10.2 percent over a year ago.
CBL to redevelop North Carolina center
CBL & Associates Properties Inc. on Monday announced plans to transform Cary Towne Center in Cary, N.C., into a mixed-use destination.
Last week's announcement by IKEA of its proposal to build a store adjacent to Cary Towne Center provides a keystone attraction for the project and a catalyst for its redevelopment, the company said.
Over the last several months, CBL has worked with the town of Cary to start the rezoning process with the goal of creating a flexible land use that will facilitate a creative, modern, multi-phase and multi-use redevelopment, the Chattanooga-based shopping center developer said.
"We are committed to executing a progressive redevelopment of the project that seamlessly complements the proposed IKEA store and is reflective of the vision and unique characteristics of the market," said Stephen Lebovitz, CEO of CBL, in a statement.
Local gas prices among cheapest in the country
Higher oil prices pushed up Chattanooga gas prices last week for the first time in nearly a month last week, but prices at the pump in metro Chattanooga remain 34 cents per gallon below the national average, according to service station surveys released Monday by the online news service GasBuddy.com.
Gas prices were even cheaper in Cleveland, Tenn., which boasted the fourth lowest price of any metro market in America.
On Sunday, the average price of gas in Cleveland was $1.98 per gallon, virtually unchanged from the previous week. The average retail price of regular gas in Chattanooga rose 1.6 cents per gallon last week to $2.01 per gallon.
That compares with the national average that increased 2.1 cents per gallon in the last week to $2.35 per gallon.
Chattanooga is the 18th lowest priced market among all U.S. metropolitan cities surveyed by GasBuddy.com
"Due to a $3-per-barrel surge in crude oil prices in the last week, gasoline prices have been moving higher across a good portion of the U.S.," wrote Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com. "Optimism surrounding a likely deal to renew OPEC's production cuts is pushing oil prices higher, but also the possibility that non-OPEC countries may join in has led to a dramatic turnaround in oil prices recently, with WTI (West Texas Intermediary) crude oil climbing back over $50 per barrel for the first time since late April."
Hyundai, Kia probed over engine recalls
The U.S. government is investigating whether Hyundai and Kia moved quickly enough to recall more than 1.6 million cars and SUVs because the engines can stall, increasing the risk of a crash.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it's looking into three recalls by the Korean brands. The agency also said it's investigating whether the automakers followed safety reporting requirements.
Hyundai recalled about 470,000 vehicles in September of 2015 because debris from manufacturing can restrict oil flow to connecting rod bearings. That can cause bearings in the four-cylinder engines to wear and fail. The repair is an expensive engine block replacement.
Last March Hyundai and Kia issued two more recalls covering 1.2 million additional vehicles with the same engine problem.
The companies said they're cooperating with the investigation.
"We act quickly and efficiently to address and fix problems for impacted customers, while following all government regulations and requirements," Hyundai said in a statement Monday.
If the agency finds the companies, both owned by Hyundai, moved too slowly to recall vehicles, then it can issue fines or order additional recalls.