Government

Arkansas truckers will try again next year to persuade the legislature there to pass a bill to raise the state’s 22.8-cent diesel tax by 5 cents to pay for improved roads and bridges.

The U.S. Department of Transportation will take applications from states for $500 million in surface transportation projects under a fourth round of its competitive Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program.

Consumer confidence fell this month, the New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday.

Isn’t it always this way? The good news is, there’s plenty of freight for the trucking industry to haul, and strong signs that growth will continue.

LAS VEGAS — Domestic trucking should continue to benefit from a decent economy this year and into 2013, and truck makers are looking at steady global economies — with the crucial exception of Europe, economists and analysts said here at a heavy-duty industry meeting.

Manufacturers and sellers of heavy-duty trucks will take stock of industry and the economy at the annual American Truck Dealers Association meeting in Las Vegas, Feb. 3-6.

The U.S. economy expanded at a 2.8% annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday.

Consumer confidence rose in January to the highest level in almost a year, according to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index released Friday.