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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.

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.

Swedish truckmaker AB Volvo does not plan to sell its 5% stake in Japanese automaker Mitsubishi and will proceed with taking a 19.9% share in the company, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday on its Web site.

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: Raft of new wireless technologies could lead to airwave gridlock; firm develops protocol to make Web-enabled cell phones more finger-friendly; virtual blueprints save time and money for bearing manufacturer; and more.

This afternoon's headlines: Calif. energy crunch leading to more production cutbacks; GM, Chrysler to cut 1Q 2001 production; TCA joins drive to mandate national fuel surcharge; and more.

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.