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An index of manufacturing activity in the Chicago area dipped in December but showed continued expansion, the Institute for Supply Management-Chicago said Thursday.

Initial jobless claims increased last week for the first time in a month, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Following last week’s announcement, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has published its final hours-of-service rule in the Federal Register.

As it has with trucking rules, the federal government has tightened hours-of-service rules for airline pilots, while exempting air cargo pilots.

XPO Logistics said it has appointed Dominick Muzi to be president of Concert Group Logistics, the Buchanan. Mich., company’s freight forwarding subsidiary.

Trucking executive Thomas Nightingale is now president of sales and marketing for ModusLink Global Solutions, a publicly traded logistics and marketing firm specializing in the consumer goods and technology industries.