Dry van truckload carrier USA Truck incurred a first quarter loss of $3 million, or 29 cents a share, compared to a loss of $1.9 million, or 18 cents a share, for the same quarter of 2009.

The company attributed the results to high fuel prices and severe winter weather, which caused accident frequencies to rise.

"Industry conditions, while still challenging, have improved," said Clifton R. Beckham, president and CEO.

The company said its cost of fuel per gallon was up 20.6 percent, net of fuel surcharge recoveries.

On a more positive note, the Arkansas-based company posted revenue of $89.2 million, up 7.7 percent from the year-ago's $82.8 million.

"Speaking metaphorically, we have carefully positioned our pieces across the chess board over the past few years, and believe we are ready to strike," Beckham said. "All of our time and resources are now focused squarely on operational execution, and we are beginning to see results.

"Unfortunately, our model is not yet strong enough to withstand the combination of seasonal low freight volumes and the exogenous impact to our cost structure brought on by steadily increasing fuel prices and the most severe winter weather in recent years," he added.