NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - President Bush has chosen John W. Snow, the CEO of CSX Corp., one of the nation's biggest freight railroads, to replace Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill.

"John Snow has excelled as a business leader, an expert on economic policy, an academic, and as a public servant," Bush said at a news conference Monday morning. "He'll be a superb member of my Cabinet."

John Snow

Sources say the White House will also name Steve Friedman, a former co-chairman of Goldman Sachs, to replace economic adviser Larry Lindsey, who resigned along with O'Neill Friday.

The two men will try to gain the confidence of Wall Street while trying to communicate the administration's policies on tax cuts and other economic stimulus measures.

"I pledge ... to use all my talents, my power, energy and ability, to strengthen the current economic recovery and create an environment where millions of job creators -- small businesses, partnerships and large businesses -- and investors all across America will grow and prosper," Snow said in a press conference.

The 63-year-old Ohio native has been CEO of Richmond, Va.-based CSX since 1991. CSX, the biggest freight carrier on the Eastern seaboard with $8.1 billion in revenue in 2001, praised Bush's nomination of Snow.

President Bush formally nominates John Snow as new treasury secretary. Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

"The nation will be fortunate to have John at the helm of the Treasury Department," CSX President Michael Ward said in a statement.

Greg Valliere, political economist at Charles Schwab, was surprised by the speed of the search for Snow, whose name did not surface Friday on most lists of replacement candidates.

"People I've talked to this morning are very impressed with him," said Valliere, who said Snow appears skilled at communication and persuasion.

"I think he's going to be a part of the credibility offensive," Valliere said.

Snow previously served during the Nixon and Ford administrations. According to information on the CSX Web site, Snow in the early 1970s was a Transportation Department deputy undersecretary and administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The CSX (CSX: Research, Estimates) profile also lists Snow as having a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Virginia. Snow also has been chairman of the Business Roundtable, an influential group of top executives.

Steve Friedman

O'Neill and Lindsey resigned under pressure three days ago as part of a shake-up designed to control political damage from the ailing economy. The departures came hours after the government said the unemployment rate jumped to an eight-year high in November and businesses slashed tens of thousands of jobs.

Bush and other Republicans have been talking for months about making last year's tax cut permanent, and other tax reform and spending measures could follow.

The sluggish recovery of the early 1990s bears similarities to today's. The president is trying to avoid the fate of his father, who lost re-election in 1992 in what some blame on his not paying enough attention to the economy.

"I think there was a lot of uncertainty from the old team about what the message was," David Malpass, chief global economist at Bear Stearns, told CNNfn's Market Call, referring to O'Neill and Lindsey.

David Rosenberg, the chief North American economist at Merrill Lynch, said Snow may tolerate a softer dollar, whose relative strength has made it tough on U.S. exporters.

The dollar fell to ¥122.78 early Monday from ¥123.16 Friday. The euro slipped to $1.0090 early Monday from Friday's $1.0104

Snow's nomination would require confirmation by the Republican-controlled Senate.