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Sales of existing homes rose 1% in March to an annual rate of 6.89 million, and prices surged to a record, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday.

Navistar International Corp. said Monday it had adjusted its earnings downward for its first quarter ended Jan. 31 to $18 million or 24 cents a share, from a previously reported $20 million or 27 cents.

Arkansas Best Corp., parent of less-than-truckload carrier ABF Freight System, said Monday it earned $10.5 million or 41 cents a share in the first quarter, up from $4.5 million or 18 cents last year.

Flatbed carrier Smithway Motor Xpress Corp. reported Monday that its first-quarter net income rose to $503,000 or 10 cents a share, from $335,000 or 7 cents a year earlier.

The average retail price of regular gasoline fell 4.46 cents between April 8 and Friday to $2.24 a gallon, according to the latest Lundberg Survey of filling stations nationwide.

Oil filter manufacturers, whose replacement products generate some of the highest brand loyalty among truck operators, said they are making dramatic changes to manage the additional soot expected to be produced by new diesel engines coming in 2007.

The Environmental Protection Agency said representatives from trucking companies and associations would meet with state and local environmental agencies May 6 in Baltimore for the first in a series of meetings to develop a model idling law governing heavy-duty trucks and buses.

FedEx Corp., working with Eaton Corp., said Friday it planned to add up to 75 diesel-electric hybrid trucks to its service fleet in the next 12 months, contingent on pricing and availability.

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Volvo AB, Europe’s largest truck maker, said Monday its first-quarter income rose by a third as trucking companies in North America and Asia continued strong demand, Bloomberg reported.