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The U.S. heavy-duty fleet truck fleet is aging as carrier executives scrimp to cut costs wherever they can amid the continuing national freight drought.

A 3.2% rise in American Trucking Associations’ truck tonnage index during May from weak results in April may indicate that the worst of the recession could be over, even though the index was 11% below year-ago levels, industry experts said.

Finding quality financing for trucks and trailers recently has become more difficult for many trucking companies. The market has changed. Since last autumn, several transportation lenders have exited the business either permanently or temporarily, in large part because of losses and a lack

of liquidity.

U.S. retail diesel prices slipped 0.8 cent last week, providing a breather for the trucking industry after seven consecutive weeks of increases that had pushed the average cost to a seven-month high.

Transportation and logistics firm Amerijet International said it will acquire a majority interest in Nations Express.

The number of Americans killed in truck-related crashes fell 12% in 2008 to 4,229, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said.

U.S. factory orders rose in May for the third time in four months, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

Initial jobless claims fell by 16,000 last week, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The U.S. unemployment rate rose to 9.5% in June from 9.4% in May, the Labor Department said Thursday.