April 24, 2009: Few trucking companies have the financial artillery to seek and acquire rivals as demand falls and capacity-rich customers drive down rates, but Arkansas Best is one of them.

By the end of April, the Fort Smith, Ark.-based parent of ABF Freight System, the country’s No. 2 national less-than-truckload freight carrier behind YRC Worldwide, expects to have a formal acquisition plan — which took six months and $800,000 to draw up — allowing the company to take advantage of a down market and emerge with a bigger network and more freight.

Click here to read more at The Journal of Commerce.