A few bright spots amongst the gloom.

[Orangetxguy]

There are American companies still making a profit. Here are a few.

Transport Topics Online | Knight?s Fourth-Quarter Profit Rises

Knight’s Fourth-Quarter Profit Rises

Truckload carrier Knight Transportation’s fourth-quarter profit rose to $16.1 million, or 19 cents a share, from $13.8 million, or 16 cents, a year ago.
Revenue decreased 6.3% to $174.8 million, the company said in a statement late Wednesday.
For the 2008 year, the company's profit fell to $56.3 million, or 66 cents per share, from $63.1 million, or 72 cents, the previous year.
Revenue rose for the year, however, increasing 7.5% to $766.9 million, from $713.6 the year before.
Knight is ranked No. 38 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
By Transport Topics

And

Transport Topics Online | USA Truck?s Fourth-Quarter Income Improves

USA Truck’s Fourth-Quarter Income Improves



Truckload carrier USA Truck said Thursday its fourth-quarter profit jumped to $0.6 million, or 6 cents a share, from a loss of $1.6 million, or 15 cents, a year ago.
Revenue fell 5.2% to $116.2 million, the company said in a statement. Revenue from trucking operations fell 2.9%, to $92.9 million.
The company’s 2008 profit rose to $3.1 million, or 31 cents a share, from $0.1 million, or 1 cent a share, the previous year. Revenue also increased for the year, to $535.6 million, from $482.1 million the year before.
USA Truck is ranked No. 54 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
By Transport Topics



Transport Topics Online | Exxon Mobil Sets New Earnings Record for a U.S. Company

[Windwalker]

And, these profits would most likely come from picking up the slack from the other companies that have shut down due to the fuel prices from the first half of '08.

[Orangetxguy]

And, these profits would most likely come from picking up the slack from the other companies that have shut down due to the fuel prices from the first half of '08.

Except for ExxonMobil. They make profit, even while they sleep.

[mommee]

i read an article that said how exxonmobil is one of the few companies who can weather this recession. they have made wise investments and are financially structured to so that they can come out on top after everyone else fails. i guess their ceo's know how to run a company.

[Uturn2001]

I really don't see any oil company having a problem surviving a recession or depression. Their product is one that industrialized countries pretty much can not do without at this time. In a lot of ways it would be like having an air manufacturing station on the moon.

The industries that get hit the hardest first seem to be those where there is little demand for what they offer either because few can afford it regardless of the economy or because the supply is far higher than what is needed when demand slackens. Trucking falls into the latter.

[mommee]

sorry, uturn, i meant that exxonmobil was rated the best to come out of the recession better than most oil companies. and not all oil companies will survive. the bigger names have the capital, but not the smaller ones.

[GMAN]

I expect there will be a lot fewer companies from all sectors who will not survive this depression.

[Windwalker]

I expect there will be a lot fewer companies from all sectors who will not survive this depression.

I'm with you, GMAN. From all the things I've seen, and all the businesses that I've seen closed up, I really don't think it's a "recession" anymore. I don't know just where it slid over the edge into a "depression", but I believe the "powers that be" are avoiding calling it that so as not to panic the public into making runs on banks and such. Those that work/worked in factories and in stores don't get to see all the "available" warehouses along I-55 in Bolingbrook, IL the empty manufacturiing facilities in Indianapolis, IN and all the other small businesses around the country that are now boarded up. Or how many homes don't have the snow plowed or shovelled from in front of the garage, and no tire tracks near them. I'm getting told that, even segments of the food industry is suffereing because people are buying the cheaper cuts and products.

The "so-called" experts are saying that it's getting worse because people are saving instead of spending, but from what I see... NO ONE HAS THE MONEY TO SAVE IT OR SPEND IT. More than half the people, where I live, are out of work. Even the self-employed are not finding work to be able to keep up an income. Our leaders are afraid of public reaction if they call it a depression. But, I believe that is exactly what we are in.