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There was a time when foreign-based tire manufacturers had to overcome major hurdles to enter the North American market.

PRINCETON, N.J. — New federal safety regulations soon will drive a wave of purchases by U.S. trucking companies that have not yet adopted electronic onboard recorders and mobile communication systems that closely monitor driver performance, a technology vendor here said.

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. said Wednesday its first-quarter loss was less than a loss in the same quarter last year.

Cummins Inc. said Tuesday its first-quarter profit jumped to $149 million, or 75 cents a share, from $7 million, or 4 cents, a year ago.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration likely will not meet a deadline to issue a more expansive rule requiring fleets to use electronic onboard recorders, according to a new report.

The Canadian Trucking Alliance said the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will “inevitably” move toward broader electronic onboard recorder requirements, if not a universal mandate.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration last week issued a rule that could require as many as 5,700 trucking fleets to use electronic onboard recorders to monitor drivers’ hours by lowering the threshold for violations that trigger the EOBR mandate.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said last week it is pushing back the start of its new safety monitoring system, CSA 2010, until late this year, to give itself time to respond to criticisms and suggestions, and give fleets time to fix safety deficiencies.

State and federal grants totaling $585,000 will help 15 trucking companies in Utah install auxiliary power units, the Associated Press reported.

Wabash National Corp. said Tuesday it signed an agreement with Prime Inc. to supply the refrigerated carrier with 4,000 trailers over three years.