We have heard a lot of news over the past 12 months about soaring fuel prices and the effect it is having on the major automakers. With record-high oil prices, and gasoline running about $4.10 a gallon, drivers are spending more and more money to fill up their tanks. One of the natural options for people has been to move towards less expensive, small, and simple cars.

General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) noticed that fuel-efficient vehicles will be more appealing to consumers, and announced last week plans to reduce production at its truck division (a bit late to join the party, but at least it's something for the struggling auto maker). Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) is also slashing truck production during three months at its U.S. plants.

While It is true that most less expensive cars don't offer the same luxury when compared to sedans or SUVs, they come with a lot of options that can satisfy every individual need. Among the cheapest cars available, the article points out Honda's Fit ranked No. 11 at $13,950, a small car whose standard version comes with an adjustable steering column and four-speaker audio system, and is equipped with multiple airbags in the front, rear and side. Other vehicles that follow the same logic are the Chevrolet Aveo, ranked No. 2 at $11,460; the Toyota Yaris, third at $11,550, and the Kia Spectra, fifth at $12,895.

Shares of heavy equipment and engine manufacturer Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) have been soaring in morning trading after the company reported a growth of 13% for its first-quarter profit, helped by strong international sales. The company offered the perfect example of the international growth importance.

The company said its quarterly profit surged to $922 million, compared with $816 million a year earlier, boosted by strong global gains that offset weakness on highway truck markets in North America. Caterpillar posted earnings $1.45 per share, exceeding analysts' forecast for a quarterly profit of $1.33 per share.

Total sales for the company rose by a respectable18% year over year to $11.8 billion, beating analysts' expectations by $1 billion, according to Thomson Financial. This was mainly because the heavy equipment maker benefited from a rise of 30% in international sales, while North America revenue came with a small increase of only 4%. The results proved continued weakening in North America, where sales have been under pressure from the sluggish economy, but strength internationally where the weak dollar lifted the company's sales.

As early as this weekend, Labor Day weekend, the Bush administration could open the U.S. roadways to Mexican trucks. The Teamsters Union and three public-interest groups: The Sierra Club, Public Citizen and Environmental Law Foundation, asked a federal court yesterday for an emergency injunction to prohibit Mexican trucks on the roads.

The union has fought for 13 years to stop Mexican trucks from entering into the U.S., a promise given by Bill Clinton under the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA. They argue that the introduction of these trucks would compromise highway safety and cost U.S. jobs.

Hector Marquez, head of the Mexican Economic Ministry's Trade and NAFTA Office, disagrees. "It's very unfortunate because certainly the governments of Mexico and the United States have put forth a tremendous effort to put in place all the requirements, all the mechanisms, all the personnel and the resources to make this work and to guarantee the security and safety," the Houston Chronicle reported today. The Transportation Department's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration dismissed the suit as "without merit."

Rolando Ortega, a delegate from the National Confederation of Mexican Carriers, doesn't believe Mexican truckers want to travel into the United States.

Last week the House voted a whopping 411-3 to approve HR 1773, the Safe American Roads Act of 2007, which would set strict criteria and additional oversight of the DOT's Mexican pilot program announced in February. The vote attempts to slow the Department of Transportation's proposed pilot plan to a crawl until the DOT inspector general can certify in advance its department has met all 22 conditions Congress set back in 2001, before the U.S. southern border would be opened. The measure would require the DOT to publish detailed plans for its program, including the results of its safety audits of Mexican carriers, as well as giving U.S. truckers access to Mexico when the border opened.

If the U.S. Department of Transportation finds Mexican trucking companies violate U.S. safety regulations, the proposed pilot program would be terminated immediately.

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (Republican, W.Va), a House Transportation Committee member, said "There are serious flaws in the department's pilot program, and this legislation addresses them." One of the new law's provisions, which Capito backs, is the requirement that Mexican truck drivers speak English proficiently. Rep. Capito endorsed the law giving Mexican truckers access to U.S. roads only if they follow U.S. safety rules.

Before the vote, the DOT said it was almost ready to allow trucks from Mexico into the U.S., but the House, and other special interest groups, obviously disagree. Ken Hall, a Teamsters International Vice President, said Mexico has lax or nonexistent trucking laws. Last year, [the Teamsters] hired an independent investigator who found Mexican drivers had bad equipment and routinely used drugs." Jacqueline Gillan, vice president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, said "The vote was a bipartisan check on a runaway demonstration project that lacked any public input and violated current law."

The DOT now says it could be as late as 2008 before Congress's new criteria are met.

Twelve years ago the United States put the trucking provision of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, on hold.

In February of this year Transportation Secretary Mary Peters announced the U.S. will grant a maximum of 1,000 Mexican trucks access to U.S. highways for up to three years under a new pilot program. At the moment, Mexican trucking companies are allowed to transport goods within a 25-mile buffer zone from its borders into the United States. American trucks are currently not allowed into Mexico.

In the past three months there has been a great debate in Washington about what this trucking provision should allow and how much of an impact it would have on America's truck drivers.