(Fort Smith, Arkansas, October 26, 2007) — Arkansas Best Corporation (Nasdaq: ABFS) today announced third quarter 2007 net income of $18.9 million, or $0.75 per diluted common share, compared to third quarter 2006 net income of $31.5 million, or $1.24 per diluted common share. Arkansas Best’s third quarter 2007 revenue was $479.8 million compared to third quarter 2006 revenue of $507.3 million.

ABF Freight System, Inc.^®

ABF Freight System, Inc., the company’s largest subsidiary, had third quarter 2007 revenue of $462.2 million, a per-day decrease of 6.4% from third quarter 2006.  Third quarter 2007 operating income at ABF was $28.5 million compared to $49.4 million during the third quarter of 2006.  ABF’s third quarter 2007 operating ratio was 93.8% versus an operating ratio of 90.0% in the third quarter of 2006.  “In the midst of a challenging freight environment, ABF maintained its focus on providing value to our customers while closely monitoring costs and displaying pricing discipline,” said Robert A. Davidson, Arkansas Best President and Chief Executive Officer.

“Our third quarter profitability was influenced by several factors,” said Mr. Davidson.  “ABF’s operating margins continue to be impacted by the effects of lower tonnage levels.  In addition, as in previous quarters, the costs associated with investment in ABF’s RPM initiative added about a percentage point to ABF’s third quarter operating ratio.  Finally, higher costs associated with workers’ compensation claims, offset in part by some improvement in third-party casualty claims, added almost a point.  However, it is important to note that because of lower workers’ compensation and third-party casualty expenses in the first half of the year, these year-to-date costs are in line with the same period last year and with historical averages.” 

ABF’s third quarter 2007 total weight per day decreased by 5.8% versus last year’s third quarter.  “Since October of last year, when we first experienced significant declines in business levels, through this August, ABF’s tonnage trends remained fairly consistent,” said Mr. Davidson.  “Year-over-year tonnage comparisons for the month of September were slightly worse as we believe the economy began to weaken further compared to the first eight months of the year,” said Mr. Davidson.  “ABF’s year-over-year tonnage trends in October are running below the same period last year by approximately 4 to 4.5%.  As a result, we have taken further cost-cutting steps in order to bring our network in line with business levels.”

Total billed revenue per hundredweight was $25.87, essentially the same as last year’s third quarter figure of $25.91.  “In the midst of a tight freight environment, industry pricing is very competitive though most carriers are maintaining rational pricing,” said Mr. Davidson.  “ABF’s overall yield continues to be affected by changes in freight mix and shipment profile.  During the third quarter, ABF supplemented tonnage in its LTL business with additional spot-priced truckload shipments, improving the utilization of system capacity and increasing ABF’s total average shipment size.  Progress in ABF’s regional freight initiative caused length of haul to decrease during the third quarter.  When excluding these factors that reduce revenue per hundredweight, pure pricing on ABF’s traditional LTL business increased by approximately two percent, consistent with increases on our contracts and deferred-pricing agreements.”   

“In spite of the current freight environment, we continue to be optimistic about the potential for long-term success from ABF’s Regional Performance Model (RPM).  During the third quarter, tonnage trends for these shipments were better than those in ABF’s traditional long-haul markets,” said Mr. Davidson.  “Beginning in the fourth quarter, the year-over-year impact on operating results of the RPM investment should be reduced as we start to compare back to prior-year periods that included those same costs.  ABF remains fully committed to this initiative, and we anticipate that RPM will positively impact future revenue growth and profitability as we gain additional market share.” 

ABF’s current labor contract with its unionized employees will expire on March 31, 2008.  ABF expects to begin labor negotiations next month and anticipates a timely agreement.

Based on December 31, 2006 multiemployer pension plan information which recently became available, the current estimate of ABF’s contingent withdrawal liabilities for all multiemployer plans is in the range of approximately $800 to $850 million, on a pre-tax basis.  The range has increased primarily based upon plan assumptions used by the Central States pension fund that have not been verified by ABF or its independent pension counsel.  The estimate of ABF’s contingent withdrawal liabilities could change if further changes in plan assumptions are made.

Conference Call

Arkansas Best Corporation will host a conference call with company executives to discuss the 2007 third quarter results.  The call will be today, Friday, October 26, at 11:00 a.m. EDT (10:00 a.m. CDT).  Interested parties are invited to listen by calling (877) 275-1257 or (706) 634-6529 (for international callers).  Following the call, a recorded playback will be available through the end of the day on Thursday, November 15, 2007.  To listen to the playback, dial (800) 642-1687 or (706) 645-9291 (for international callers).  The conference call ID for the playback is 18779102.  The conference call and playback can also be accessed, through Thursday, November 15, on Arkansas Best’s Web site at arkbest.com.

Company Description

Arkansas Best Corporation, headquartered in Fort Smith, Arkansas, is a transportation holding company.  ABF Freight System, Inc., Arkansas Best’s largest subsidiary, has been in continuous service since 1923.  ABF provides transportation of less-than-truckload (“LTL”) general commodities throughout North America.  More information is available at arkbest.com and abf.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

The following is a “safe harbor” statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995:  Statements contained in this press release that are not based on historical facts are “forward-looking statements.” Terms such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “plan,” “predict,” “prospects,” “scheduled,” “should,” “would,” and similar expressions and the negatives of such terms are intended to identify forward-looking statements.  Such statements are by their nature subject to uncertainties and risk, including, but not limited to, union relations; availability and cost of capital; shifts in market demand; weather conditions; the performance and needs of industries served by Arkansas Best’s subsidiaries; actual future costs of operating expenses such as fuel and related taxes; self-insurance claims; union and non-union employee wages and benefits; actual costs of continuing investments in technology; the timing and amount of capital expenditures; competitive initiatives and pricing pressures; general economic conditions; and other financial, operational and legal risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in Arkansas Best’s Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) public filings.

The following table shows financial data and operating statistics on ABF Freight System, Inc.

ABF FREIGHT SYSTEM, INC.
OPERATING STATISTICS
 

	Three Months Ended Sep 30				Nine Months Ended Sep 30
	2007	2006	% Chg		2007	2006	% Chg
Workdays	63	63			191	191
Billed Revenue* / CWT	$    25.87	$  25.91	(0.2)%		$    25.41	$  25.01	1.6%
Billed Revenue* / Shipment	$ 332.17	$ 328.85	1.0%		$  323.16	$ 318.95	1.3%
Shipments	1,379,191	1,482,049	(6.9)%		4,067,421	4,323,433	(5.9)%
Tonnage (tons)	885,590	940,357	(5.8)%		2,586,551	2,756,654	(6.2)%

*Billed revenue does not include revenue deferral required for financial statement purposes under the Company’s revenue recognition policy.  

Includes U.S., Canadian and Puerto Rican operations of ABF affiliates.

Contact:   Ms. Judy R. McReynolds, Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer
              Telephone: (479) 785-6281

              Mr. David Humphrey, Director of Investor Relations
              Telephone: (479) 785-6200