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President Obama on March 18 signed into law an extension of the highway bill through the end of the year as part of a $17.6 billion package of tax incentives and bonding proposals aimed at spurring job creation.

Many truckload fleets have almost overnight found themselves in a mini driver shortage, as demand for freight-hauling capacity is suddenly climbing in some markets and carriers expecting better times seek to put more trucks on the road.

Industry groups and some state governments hailed the decision blocking all states from collecting Unified Carrier Registration fees until the federal government sets fee levels for 2010, but other states said the move could hamstring their safety programs.

The U.S. retail diesel price average rose another 2 cents to a 16-month high of $2.924 a gallon last week, the fourth straight increase, the Department of Energy reported.

Manufacturers and their dealers sold 19.1% more big trucks in February than they did a year earlier, marking the second consecutive month in which Class 8 sales beat their year-ago totals, according to WardsAuto.com.

Surface trade among the United States, Canada and Mexico fell by 23.3% in 2009 compared with 2008, the Department of Transportation said.

Truck and engine manufacturer Navistar Inc. said Thursday it has received its first Environmental Protection Agency certification for one of its 2010 engines and expects certification for the rest in the coming “days and weeks.”

An index of leading economic indicators improved slightly in February, marking the 11th straight increase, the New York-based Conference Board said Thursday.

Manufacturing levels in the Philadelphia expanded in March at the fastest pace so far this year, the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia said Thursday.

The consumer price index was unchanged in February, the Labor Department said Thursday.