FedEx Corp. (FDX) said Tuesday that Douglas G. Duncan, the head of the company's less-than-truckload freight division, is retiring effective Feb. 28.

FedEx, which announced the move in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, said a successor to Duncan as president and chief executive of FedEx Freight hasn't been appointed.

Less-than-truckload shippers consolidate cargo from multiple customers on single trucks. The less-than-truckload market has been hit hard amid the economic downturn, as shipping demand dried up and left an overcapacity of trucks chasing dwindling amounts of freight.

FedEx Freight posted a 27% drop in revenue in FedEx's fiscal first quarter ended Aug. 31, on a 14% decline in freight volume. Operating profit came in at $2 million, compared to $89 million in the year-ago period.

Still, the company noted last week that it recently has been seeing improving trends in the freight division as the economy showed signs of stabilizing.

-By Bob Sechler; Dow Jones Newswires; 512-394-0285; bob.sechler@dowjones.com