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Tank truck carriers, who haul everything from wine to oil field supplies to industrial chemicals, said their business finally seems to be picking up after months of downward recessionary pressure on freight volumes.

October container volume at U.S. ports is expected to drop more than 18% from the same month last year — and down more than 25% from the record-making peak season of October 2006, economic forecasters said.

The Department of Defense has extended its deadline for carriers to install new trailer-tracking hardware and software when hauling the military’s high-security and sensitive commodities, including arms, ammunition and explosives.

Gainey Corp.’s plan to reorganize into a trucking company with 80% ownership by an Arizona investor moved a step closer to completion last week after further negotiations yielded a fully supported plan, the company’s CEO said.

Aluminum and steel makers, and at least one truck manufacturer, said they are working to design truck cabs and frames using lightweight materials that could reduce a tractor’s weight by 20% to 25%.

Detroit Diesel Corp. said it will submit its first heavy-duty 2010 engine for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency certification during September, joining Cummins Inc., Mack Trucks Inc. and Volvo Trucks North America, which already have submitted applications to the agency.

In its first major regulatory action under the Obama administration, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said last week it may for the first time require new trucking companies to pass a proficiency exam before being allowed to begin operations.

The average retail price of U.S. diesel continued a slow upward creep last week, rising 1.6 cents a gallon to $2.668, a pace fleets said gives them some stability amid recession-driven volume and pricing challenges.

PITTSBURGH — Like many other champion truck drivers, Dale Duncan first took the wheel in childhood, on a family farm in Indiana, where his father supplemented the family income by driving a truck.

American Trucking Associations’ tonnage index fell 10.4% in July from a year ago, the slowest rate of decline since February, offering another sign that the sick U.S. economy may be starting to heal.