ANTenna Blog -- Business & E-Business

A new survey confirms what SMBs have been feeling in their wallets: The ailing economy has forced shipping companies in North American to raise their prices.

In fact, 70% of owners and managers running companies that transport your goods report having to increase their prices in the second quarter, thanks to the pressures of inflation. That's according to the Small Business Research Board, which gauges small-business confidence and issues of concern among seven verticals.

These transportation businesses say they've had to respond in other ways as well:

• 30% say they added or increased shipping and handling costs
  
• 25% renegotiated customer pricing agreements
  
• 20% reduced other operatings costs
  
• 15% negotiated long-term, fixed-cost supply contracts
  
• 10% changed product mix
  
• 5% reduced lead times

You can guess the single biggest issue transportation companies cite as having the greatest impact on their businesses: energy and fuel costs, cited by 67% of respondents (who were surveyed before oil prices began descending, though that's not to imply it would have made a bit of difference). That response is far ahead of the No. 2 response, taxes, though both are among the top five issues small-business owners across industries say will help them decide who to elect for president in a few weeks, according to a September Fortune Small Business poll.