Con-way's net income for the second quarter dropped to $31.5 million, compared to $48.7 million for the second quarter of 2008. Revenue also fell 21.2 percent to $1.06 billion
, versus second-quarter 2008 revenue of $1.34 billion.

Despite these declines, Con-way was positive about the quarter's performance when comparing it to the $154 million loss in the first quarter.

"Despite the challenges of the recessionary economy and a weak freight market, we returned the company to profitability," said Douglas Stotlar, Con-way president and CEO. "These results are a testament to the solid execution by Con-way's employees at all of our business units, and the benefit of cost-reduction measures implemented in April."

Con-way Freight, the company's less-than-truckload operation, also experienced a weaker quarter than the second quarter of 2008, with operating income of $49 million. This is 36.7 percent lower than last year's $77.4 million earned. Revenue dropped from the year-ago period to $638 million, a 22.6 percent drop from $824 million. Tonnage per day was down 7 percent, due to weak demand, the company says.

However, the company says its volumes improved each month during the quarter. "While there was some benefit from normal seasonality, the consistent month-to-month sequential growth was an encouraging trend," Stotlar said. "However, until the market's excess capacity is resolved, we expect the pricing environment to remain competitive."

The company's truckload unit saw its operating income down to $6.9 million, a 44.7 percent fall from last year's $12.4 million. Revenue slipped 34.6 percent to $89.8 million, while revenue for the year-ago period was $137.4 million. The company attributes the declines to soft demand intensified by excess capacity.

"The volume of shipper bid activity moderated from what we saw in the first quarter but weak demand and over-capacity kept pricing under pressure," Stotlar said. "Our truckload unit took steps in the quarter to right-size its fleet, selling 195 older tractors and aligning its resource base closer to market demand."