Dow Jones Transportation Average - Definition and Overview

The Dow Jones Transportation Average (DJTA) is the oldest U.S. stock market index. It was created on July 3, 1884 by Charles Dow, co-founder of Dow Jones & Company, as part of the "Customer's Afternoon Letter". At its inception, it consisted of eleven transportation-related companies: nine railroads and two non-rail. They were the following:

• Chicago & Northwestern Railway
• Union Pacific
• Delaware, Lackawanna & Western
• Missouri Pacific Railroad
• Lake Shore Railroad
• Louisville & Nashville Railroad
• New York Central Railroad
• Pacific Mail Steamship Company
• St. Paul Railroad
• Western Union
• Northern Pacific preferred

Components

Today (as of 2004), the index consists of the following 20 companies (weighted to adjust for stock splits and other factors):

• Alexander & Baldwin (ocean transportation)
• AMR Corporation, parent of American Airlines
• Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway
• Continental Airlines
• C.H. Robinson Worldwide (logistics)
• CNF Incorporated (supply chain management)
• CSX Transportation (railroad)
• Delta Air Lines
• Expeditors International (logistics)
• FedEx
• GATX Corporation (rail and air transportation)
• JB Hunt Transport Services (truck transportation)
• Southwest Airlines
• Norfolk Southern (railroad)
• Northwest Airlines
• Ryder System (trucks & supply chain management)
• Union Pacific (railroad)
• United Parcel Service
• Yellow Roadway Corporation (truck transportation)

External links

• Dow Jones & Company website (http://www.dowjones.com/)
• Yahoo: Chart of DJTA performance (1928-present) (http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=%5EDJT&t=my&l=on&z=l&q=l&c=)