"The final quarter of the year reflected the continuation of a difficult operating environment for our company and our industry, with some statistics already confirming a dramatic slowdown in the economy from the third quarter," said president & CEO Gail B. Cooper.
Cooper added that those conditions affected freight levels and limited potential for revenue growth during the quarter and year.
Although fuel costs rose in 2002, Cooper said the increase was mitigated to some extent by an increasing mix of owner-operated power units and the pass-through of a portion of the fuel cost increase via surcharges.
The company's operating results for 2002 also benefited from higher gains on the disposition of property and equipment, other than the sale and leaseback of power equipment to owner-operators, as well as lower interest expense due both to reduced borrowings and lower prevailing interest rates.
