Truckload

USA Truck has appointed John Simone as president and CEO, as well as a member of the board of directors.

The TransCore DAT North American Freight Index rose 42 percent year-over-year in January, the highest-ever volume for that month.

FTR Associates’ Shippers Condition Index recorded a reading of -4.9 in December, reflecting tightening capacity, which is expected to get “significantly worse” by mid-2013.

Only 59 percent of shippers use performance metrics to manage freight costs, and only 43 percent are currently running or planning to implement a transportation management...

PTA Holdings, a holding company specializing in the automotive industry, through its subsidiary Nortford, has signed a lease for a maintenance and operations facility to serve the trucking industry in Fredericksburg, Iowa.

FTR Associates’ Trucking Conditions Index for December, published in its February 2013 Trucking Update, was a favorable reading of 8.38, although it declined from November’s reading of 9.7.

Private equity company Eberhart Capital has agreed to acquire Omaha, Neb.-based refrigerated truckload carrier Poling Transportation, now Poling Express, in a stock and cash transaction.

Lafayette, Ind.-based trailer manufacturer Wabash National reported net income in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $80.2 million, compared with $7.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

CK Commercial Vehicle Research’s first quarter of 2013 Fleet Sentiment Report, which surveyed U.S. 64 fleet operators, showed “positive signs” for medium and heavy duty commercial truck and trailer purchases.

Nashville, Ind.-based transportation forecaster FTR Associates has released preliminary data showing Class 8 truck net orders in January at 22,235, which is 7 percent higher compared with December 2012...

A strong start for the spot truckload freight market bodes well for increased truck volumes in 2013, as the housing market and industrial freight heat up, according to load-matching service DAT.

What's an extra week per quarter worth? To Landstar Systems, about $25 million to $30 million.

USA Truck reported a net loss of $3.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, an improvement compared with the net loss of $4.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Chattanooga, Tenn.-based truckload carrier Covenant Transport reported profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $1.5 million, up from a net loss of $2.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

North American truckload transportation business Knight Transportation reported profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $17.7 million, up 1.3 percent from $17.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

North American trucking and transportation company Landstar System today reported its profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $34.0 million, increasing 4 percent from $32.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Trucking company Werner Enterprises reported profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $26.0 million, dropping 12 percent from $29.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Celadon Group reported profit in the second quarter, ending Dec. 31, 2012, of the company’s fiscal year ending June 30, was $7.4 million, jumping 34.6 percent from $5.5 million in the same quarter in 2011.

Arkansas-based trucking and transportation company J.B. Hunt Transport Services reported profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $84.0 million, rising 15.7 percent from $72.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Trucking company Heartland Express reported its profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $14.3 million, dropping 16.5 percent from $17.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Mondovi, Wis.-based temperature-controlled truckload carrier Marten Transport recently reported the highest net income for any quarter and year in the company’s history.

Phoenix-based regional truckload carrier Swift Transportation reported profit in the fourth quarter of 2012 was $46.9 million, jumping 27.3 percent from $36.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2011.

The American Trucking Associations today reported that its seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 2.8 percent in December, after jumping 3.9 percent in November (revised).

$1.4 billion Canadian transport operator Mullen expects 'challenging year' in 2013.

Truckers who were “cautiously optimistic” in 2012 are increasingly pessimistic about their business outlook for 2013.

In a deal with SEA Transport, truck manufacturer Iveco, a Fiat Industrial company, has delivered eight Stralis Active Space Super3 tractor units for the container transport company’s heavy truck fleet.

White Plains, N.Y.-based energy investment company Fortistar, through its new affiliate TruStar Energy, which helps commercial fleets transition their fuel supply from oil to natural gas, has purchased a majority interest in Vocational Energy.

Chassis transportation company Direct ChassisLink has named Ron Joseph senior vice president of operations.

Sales of natural gas medium and heavy duty trucks and buses will expand steadily over the remainder of the decade, according to a recent report from Pike Research, part of Navigant’s Energy Practice.

Nashville, Ind.-based transportation forecaster FTR Associates has reported that its Trucking Conditions Index for November, published in its January 2013 Trucking Update, rose almost two full points to a favorable reading of 9.7.

Class 8 truck orders in December 2012 totaled 20,836 units, a 6 percent increase from November but a 30 percent decline from the same month in 2011, according to preliminary data from FTR Associates.

Celadon Trucking Services has agreed to acquire Rock Leasing and Kelly Logistics.

Robert L. Johnson, founder and chairman of The RLJ Companies and chairman of RLJ Equity Partners, today announced the acquisition of regional trucking company R. Thompson Trucking, now RLJ Thompson Trucking.

Transportation marketplace uShip.com has closed an $18 million round of Series C financing with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers to extend the development, sales and marketing of uShip’s commercial freight platform...

The American Trucking Associations today reported that its seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 3.7 percent in November, following October’s 3.7 percent drop. It was the first monthly gain since July.

The most important benefit Arnold Transportation may gain from its merger with LinkAmerica isn’t additional trucks or drivers but density.