ATA: Seasonally adjusted truck tonnage index up 1.1% in March

The index increased 5% compared to March of 2014, according to the American Trucking Associations.    Domestic Truck tonnage increased 1.1 percent in March, following a revised decrease of 2.8 percent during the previous month, according to the American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index. ATA previously reported a 3.1 percent drop in the index for the month of February.
   The seasonally adjusted index equaled 133.5 in March, a 5 percent increase compared to March 2014. The increase was greater than the 3.3 percent growth in February but below January’s 6.7 percent year-over-year gain.
   The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, was up 17.2 percent from February.
   Tonnage in the first quarter was unchanged from the previous quarter, but up 5 percent from the first quarter of 2014.
   “While tonnage did not fully recoup the loss from February, it increased nicely in March,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello in a statement from the association. “I’d say that tonnage was one of the better indicators for the month, which is a positive sign for the broader economy.”
   Costello added that truck tonnage has increased in five of the last six months, but is still down 1.7 percent from the high mark set in January.