Fuel price spike hits truckers hard

The executive director of the Iowa Motor Truck Association says the trucking industry’s been socked hard by the recent surge in fuel prices.Iowa Motor Truck Association executive director Scott Weiser says not only have diesel prices pinched the profits of trucking firms, but insurance costs and the falling value of rigs have compounded their financial predicament. He says it’s hard to recover costs when fuel prices are already locked into contracts and the price takes a rapid spike. Weiser says last week’s closure of a long-time Iowa trucking company is evidence of the problem.Umthun Trucking in Eagle Grove closed last week, and he says other companies are struggling.