Freight demand is up nearly 5% week over week, and spot rates are still climbing. In this SONAR update, we break down tender rejections near 13%, rising van contract and spot rates, flatbed conditions and new LTL National Insights data. You’ll also see where spot market conditions are strengthening, how LTL cost per hundredweight is trending by region, and what to watch as the market moves deeper into peak season.
Truckload freight demand climbed nearly 5% week over week as of November 9th, pushing the FreightWaves SONAR Tender Volume Index to 11,600 from just under 11,000 on October 22nd — a level last seen in late spring — according to a SONAR data review presented by Julie Van de Kamp.
The demand uptick matters for carriers, brokers, and shippers because it is arriving in an already capacity-constrained market. The Outbound Tender Rejection Index held at 12.95%, up 0.22 percentage points week over week, while flatbed rejections were even tighter at 21%. With both demand and rejections trending upward simultaneously, shippers face compounding pressure on rates and capacity access as the peak freight season accelerates.
Van spot rates reached $3.49 per mile on November 9th, up from $3.44 in September, with blue-shading across most of the national spot market map indicating broad rate increases over the prior four days. Key bright spots included Wyoming, Utah, Montana, and Laredo. Pockets of rate softness — shown in pink and red — were concentrated along parts of the East Coast and select Midwest markets including Rock Island, Illinois; Madison, Wisconsin; and Philadelphia.
“Spot rates are really going up across the country,” said Van de Kamp. “So much blue overall in this market, meaning that spot rates have risen in the past 4 days.”
Contract rates are also climbing. The van contract rate per mile linehaul index — BCRPM1 — hit $2.85 per mile, a 52-week high, Van de Kamp noted. The simultaneous rise in spot and contract rates suggests the market is not experiencing an isolated or short-lived spike.
In the LTL segment, cost per hundredweight rose from $46.78 in August to $48.98 in October, a gain of roughly $2.20 over two months. SONAR’s platform now breaks that figure down by region and by length of haul — covering city, short-haul, tweener, mid-haul, and long-haul segments — giving shippers and brokers more granular visibility into where LTL pricing pressure is most acute.
On the fuel side, the Department of Energy diesel price was down about 6 cents week over week as of November 9th, though still up 9 cents month over month. Van de Kamp said the broader market picture remains one of moderately tight conditions, and she indicated she will continue monitoring whether the demand uptick persists deeper into the fall peak period.
- Truckload demand surged nearly 5% week over week, with the SONAR Tender Volume Index rising to 11,600 from under 11,000 on October 22nd.
- Van spot rates hit $3.49 per mile on November 9th while the van contract rate per mile reached a 52-week high of $2.85.
- LTL cost per hundredweight climbed from $46.78 in August to $48.98 in October, with flatbed tender rejections sitting at 21%.
This Summary is generated thanks to a transcription of the interview, for the full interview please enjoy the video above.
