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FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service are close to a contract that could bring the Memphis-based company at least $5 billion in revenue over the next several years, making it the most lucrative postal contract ever, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

Running a trucking operation in the western U.S. requires different strategies than in the more densely populated East. Several western states are freight magnets: lots of shipments go in but not nearly as many come out, making the backhaul as sought after as water in the desert.

In the news this morning: Crude oil prices rise as OPEC cuts loom; Florida East Coast Industries names new CFO; Dorsey Trailers gets financing extended; and more.

Today's technology headlines: America Online, Psion in handheld email, instant message pact; ShipDesk.com goes under; 3Com exec ponders the future of wireless technology; and more.

Emery Worldwide Airlines has lost a round in court in its effort to block an possible airfreight deal between the U.S. Postal Service and FedEx when a federal court refused to issue an injunction against such an agreement.

This afternoon's headlines: UPS places $6 billion order for 60 Airbus jets; DOT unveils new software to identify freight bottlenecks; Mercury Air Cargo names new COO; and more.

Linda Chavez, President-elect Bush's pick to be labor secretary, announced Tuesday that she had abandoned her bid for the Cabinet post amid controversy that she housed an illegal immigrant.

In an interview with Transport Topics, Clyde J. Hart Jr. said he would consider joining the Bush administration as the permanent head of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration if asked.

Small fleets and independent owner-operators, expected to bear the brunt of the coming shakeout in trucking, are getting a helping hand from an unlikely source: bigger truck lines and logistics firms.