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NAPLES, Fla. — Shippers gathered here for the National Small Shipments Traffic Conference annual meeting heard that the market for expedited cargo moves this year would probably not be as strong as previously expected.

NAPLES, Fla. — Amid widespread membership concerns about the future of the National Small Shipments Traffic Conference, the group’s president told attendees at its spring meeting here that the organization was financially sound and searching for a new executive director.

The Department of Transportation said it has asked 61 cargo and passenger airlines to refund money the government paid them as compensation for lost revenue after the 9/11 terrorist attacks because those carriers overestimated their losses.

Sales of heavy-duty trucks fell 4.2% in February from what was already a weak month in 2002.

A three-year slide in trailer sales is expected to end in 2003, if it hasn’t already, as carriers funnel money into additional equipment to handle increasing freight volumes.

The two largest U.S. shipper organizations find themselves with most of their top executive positions vacant, just as the freight transportation industry is facing explosive fuel costs, a murky economic outlook and a host of legislation on Capitol Hill.

Sales of heavy-duty trucks rose 2% in January from a year earlier despite industry predictions that sales would drop off substantially during the new year. The gain came on the heels of a weak December, when truck sales fell 5.4% from a year earlier.

Bankrupt less-than-truckload carrier Consolidated Freightways auctioned 11 terminals last week, generating $25 million that it will use to pay off creditors, company representatives said.

Bankrupt less-than-truckload carrier Consolidated Freightways said it would auction off 10 more terminals on Jan. 27 as part of its ongoing asset liquidation.

In the first full quarter since the demise of less-than-truckload carrier Consolidated Freightways, the remaining major LTL players said they are enjoying stronger profits amid a lackluster economy and sharply rising fuel prices.