News in brief

New Wal-Mart exec to work out of D.C.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has named Dan Bryant senior vice president of global policy and government affairs.

Dan Bartlett, corporate affairs executive vice president, announced the hire in a memo to his staff Tuesday. Bryant, who will report to Bartlett, begins at Wal-Mart on Nov. 9 and will be based in Washington, D.C.

Bryant will oversee federal and international government affairs and policy concerns. He'll serve as the company's representative before members of the U.S. Congress and in regard to the White House and federal agencies. Bryant's duties also will include managing "relationships with international stakeholders in the U.S., external stakeholders in international retail, sourcing markets and Global eCommerce," the memo reads.

Currently, Bryant serves as a partner and chairman of the Global Public Policy and Government Affairs Practice Group in Washington.

-- Chris Bahn

USA Truck fills post for safety, recruiting

USA Truck has named Billy Cartwright as vice president for safety and recruiting.

Before joining USA Truck, Cartwright served as senior director of operations for Con-way Inc.

At Con-way, Cartwright managed 3,100 drivers and support personnel and oversaw fleet management, customer service, planning, equipment control, service team and terminal management. He worked 16 years at the company, also serving as director of safety.

"Billy's wide-ranging experience with an industry-leading company will serve us well as we work to enhance our Company's operations," USA Truck CEO Tom Glaser said in a news release announcing the hire. "Improving safety, driver recruiting and driver orientation are all key goals for USA Truck and we look forward to his contributions in these important areas."

USA Truck hired Martin Tewari last month as president of its trucking division. Tewari had also worked at Con-way, which sold in September to XPO Logistics.

-- Chris Bahn

Arkansas Index slips as 10 stocks decline

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, slipped 0.66 to 323.69 Tuesday.

Ten stocks declined, and eight advanced.

Murphy Oil rose 3.4 percent on heavy volume.

Communications Sales & Leasing gained 1.3 percent in average trading.

Total volume of the index was 20.4 million shares.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

Business on 10/07/2015

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