Cheapest Gas Buoys Kirby Shipping Dow Chemicals: Freight Markets

The world’s cheapest natural gas means Kirby Corp. barges are making more trips along the Mississippi River and Quality Distribution Inc. tanker trucks are rolling along America’s highways more frequently.

Dow Chemical Co. is among customers calling on vessels and vehicles to haul their gas-derived products to railways, ports and other facilities as they expand production in the U.S., where the fuel costs less than half what it does in Europe or Asia. The share of Kirby’s ships in use has reached the highest in almost three years, and Quality is generating more revenue from each truck than it did before the last recession started.