U.S. companies borrowed more in September than a year ago to finance new equipment, the most in any month since December, but global economic and policy uncertainties curbed spending, the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association said.

When electric-car company Tesla Motors Inc. started selling its flagship Model S luxury hatchback earlier this year, it eschewed the traditional dealership network to open its own stores. That's not sitting well with U.S. auto dealers, who have controlled new-vehicle sales for nearly a century. Some are suing the new entrant.

Commercial vessels that operate beyond the internal waters of the United States, otherwise known as "beyond the boundary line," are subject to the provisions of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, which requires that they be allowed to rest.

Many large U.S. companies continue to try and "game the system" at year's end, artificially improving their balance sheets by manipulating receivables, payables and inventory, according to a study from REL, a division of The Hackett Group. Their efforts, which can range from deep discounting and extended payment terms on sales to simply "losing" supplier bills, do have a positive impact in Q4, the study found. But these companies pay a harsh price in Q1, when working capital performance bounces back to even worse levels than before.

The primary business of a port is serving as a hub for water-borne commerce and all of the logistics that entails, with each port competing for the business of shippers and container operators. Every investment made by a port authority, from a crane to a dredge to a security checkpoint, must be based on how this activity will not only position the port to current customers, but how it will affect the attraction of future customers.

The food and beverage industry has made some major moves in recent days in the struggle over super-sweet products. Major cereal-makers Nestle and General Mills pledged to cut sugar and salt content in children's breakfast cereals abroad, while soda and restaurant trade groups sued to stop a New York City ban on sales of large sugary drinks.

There are clearly identifiable steps needed to enhance shipping's already very impressive record of maritime safety, says International Chamber of Shipping Secretary General Peter Hinchliffe. There should be mandatory provisions to provide a place of refuge for ships in need of assistance, plus timely and obligatory reporting of casualty investigations by Flag States to the International Maritime Organization, replicating the handling of aviation incidents. In addition, environmental protection and crew and passenger safety can be addressed better by raising the current level of guidance on providing a place of refuge to a new level of obligation, he said.

FoodLink, a buying platform that connects fresh food retailers and wholesalers to a network of more than 2,000 supplier companies, will acquire TRUETRAC, a provider of mobile traceability solutions to growers, harvesters, packers and shippers of fresh-packed produce. The combined company will be the food industry's first integrated network for produce traceability that links crop planning, harvesting, packing, order management, shipping, receiving and individual item tracking from the field to the supermarket checkout line.