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There was no magic on display at the Society of Automotive Engineers annual Truck and Bus Conference last week as manufacturers were workign feverishly to build products that meet a variety of looming federal standards.

While trucking has had to deal with more pressing issues like higher fuel prices and a softening freight market, one expert at this year's Management Outlook Forum said driver pay is still a big problem.

In the news this morning: Snow hits St. Louis as winter storm heads east; Logistics.Com selects new CEO; Valeo plans job cuts at U.S. parts plant; and more.

Today's technology headlines: VerticalNet, VeriSign in pact for secure online transactions; FedEx execs say integration is key to survival; international cooperation boosting efforts to develop next-generation semiconductors; and more.

This afternoon's headlines: Ice and snow hit western Texas; GM to end Oldsmobile line, cut 15,000 jobs; Illinois, Indiana highways still icy after blizzard; and more.

Truckload carriers Swift Transportation Inc. and M.S. Carriers announced a merger late Monday. The $384 million deal will make M.S. Carriers a wholly-owned subsidiary of Swift, the companies said.

Lower oil prices, moderate economic growth and a drop in interest rates should bode well for trucking in 2001 — at least for companies that survive the bankruptcies and consolidations predicted to sweep the industry, according to the experts at this year's Management Outlook Forum.

The Department of Defense announced the creation of a joint military-industry fuel price board in a step toward payment of a fuel surcharge by the Pentagon for the transport of goods by commercial motor carriers.

While the Canadian trucking industry is hopeful that the recently elected government will put transportation policies on the agenda, their pre-election report card suggests that will not necessarily be the case.

In the news this morning: U.S. national diesel average lowest since August; blizzard leaves Chicago-area interstates slippery; Delphi component plant expansion hinges on tax break; and more.