American Trucking Associations said it is taking this week to extend a national “pat on the back” to the 3.4 million U.S. professional truck drivers.

Existing homes sales fell in July for a fifth straight month, the National Association of Realtors said Monday.

The Department of Defense last week awarded its controversial $1.6 billion logistics contract to Menlo Worldwide Government Services.

The national average prices of retail diesel and gasoline rose last week, even as crude oil futures fell to an eight-week low after Hurricane Dean passed without any significant disruption to U.S. oil production.

More than 375 professional truck drivers from all 50 states are expected to compete this week in what American Trucking Associations calls the “Super Bowl of Safety” — the National Truck Driving Championships in Minneapolis.

The national average retail price of diesel fell 5.1 cents last week to $2.847 a gallon — its largest weekly drop since January — while the gasoline average fell 6.7 cents to $2.771 a gallon.

Logistics management firm Smart Move lost $2.5 million or 23 cents a share in the second quarter, compared with a loss of $3.4 million or 75 cents a year ago.