Reply #7: Fuel costs stagger business

[UpInArms]

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/business/20050809-9999-1b9oil.html

It's hard to complain when business is good. But Mike Hurley, a veteran of 30 years in the trucking business, is willing to make the case.

Hurley owns a 16-truck operation in Spring Valley that haul rocks, dirt and other raw materials for the region's booming construction industry. But he says what should be strong profits for Kelly & Associates are getting erased by $12,000 to $15,000 more each month in diesel costs.

"We can't pass on the fuel costs fast enough to recoup the increases," said Hurley, who noted that diesel costs have risen about 50 cents in two weeks. "We're not making what we should be making in a booming business."

There's little relief in sight.

Crude prices for September delivery closed yesterday on the New York Mercantile Exchange at $63.94 a barrel, up $1.63, or 2.6 percent, after climbing as high as $64 shortly before the end of the regular session. Oil prices have risen 47 percent this year.

...more...