Mr Tito Lopez"s attention is inescapably drawn to Detroit and the plight of the so called Big 3 automotive manufacturers. His trucking business at the Port of Brownsville deals mostly in steel, not cars, yet the future of his business is inextricably linked to the American auto industry. As car companies have dialed down production, demand for primary materials, such as steel, the largest product shipped through the Port of Brownsville, have fallen on hard times. Despite a glut of steel at the port, shipments have suffered a precipitous decline, leaving Mr Lopez and his partners searching for ways to keep their fleet of 200 trucks on the road.
Mr Lopez said that "We have been hit hard. We were moving 5,000 tons of steel a month, now if we move 800 tons that"s a lot."
Mr Lopez and his brothers own two trucking outfits at the Port of Brownsville, Transporte International Lopez Ochoa and Transporte International Jonick Lopez. The business ships thousands of tons of steel used for auto manufacturing from the Port of Brownsville to auto manufacturing plants in Mexico. But, as car sales have dropped so has the demand for the steel used to make the vehicles.
Mr Lopez and his partners cheered when President Mr Bush came through with USD 17.4 billion in short term loans for GM and Chrysler in December 2008, but the future of the fledgling automotive industry remains in doubt. Trucking companies at the port are hardly alone. An uncertain future lingers over all logistics companies at the port.
Transportation is one of the Port of Brownsville"s biggest industries. Products typically arrive on barge, and leave on trucks or rail. In fact, more than 70% is loaded on rail cars and pulled by the Brownsville & Rio Grande International Railroad to Olmito where Kansas City Southern Mexico or Union Pacific picks up the cargo. The business generates about USD 315 per carload.
For the month of November, the number of carloads out of the port dropped to 1,726, down almost 50% as compared to the same month in 2007. The year end total is expected to surpass 2007 numbers, but fourth quarter totals will be down dramatically.
Mr Norma Torres president & COO for the BRG Railroad said that "We are saving on fuel by not using all 10 of our locomotives. And in other areas we"re prioritizing things that don"t need to be done now repairs for example."