Shippers are signaling a return to just-in-time shipping in reducing the inventory level buffers that they were building. This could pull some freight back into the truckload market.
Truckload contract rates have been remarkably stable over the past few years, but they are about to be tested over the next 12 months.
Truckload demand has collapsed, largely due to the loss of transcontinental freight to intermodal, but tender rejection and spot rates remain on par to slightly higher than last year, an indication that capacity is under far more pressure than demand.
Reports of immigration services targeting truck drivers caused a sharp spike in spot rates this past week, but as of late week tender rejections remained steady. Weak demand may be hiding growing fragility in the market.
The truckload contract market has fallen into stagnation after what looked like a transition late last year. What are the takeaways heading into the late year bid season?
Truckload carriers are not only hauling less freight, but moving it less distance. This has a compounding effect on keeping capacity loose as longer moves take up more capacity. If supply chain strategies normalize, it could have an impact on transportation markets.
Tariffs and a confounding trade policy have helped boost import demand in the first half, but that appears to be settling out to finish the year.
Chart of the Week: Outbound Tender Volume Index – USA SONAR: OTVI.USA The national Outbound Tender Volume Index (OTVI), which measures truckload demand, jumped 6.5% in the week and a half leading up to the Labor Day holiday weekend. While an increase is typical for this period, the scale of this rise is unusual. Let’s break down […]
Are declining import bookings a response to erratic trade policy, or are there broader economic signals to be gleaned?
Two of the three primary freight demand indicators have fallen into significant slides with only intermodal holding up, but for how long?
Just in case ordering has diminished the truckload market’s utility, specifically for cross continental freight, but that mechanism may come undone later in the year.
The widening gap between regional rejection rates underpins the growing fragility of the truckload market.
Container imports surged to a multi-year high in early July, driven by importers racing to recover lost time after tariff disruptions. While volumes spiked, this early peak doesn’t necessarily signal stronger demand.. As inventories grow more expensive to hold, maritime carriers are bracing for softer demand and more volatile shipping patterns in the months ahead.
Surface transportation rates took a hard right to start the year, thanks to shifting supply chain strategies and a slowing economy. Is this just a pause or is there further to fall?
Chart of the Week: Carrier Details Net Revocations – USA SONAR: CDNR.USA Carrier Net Revocations—which measure how many truckload operators (businesses) are exiting the industry—have remained unseasonably elevated throughout the first half of the year. The current pace of exits is 16% higher than during the same period in 2024. Although new authority issuances have increased this […]
Container bookings data has rebounded back to previous year levels. Is a wave of freight coming to surface markets?
Uncertainty springing from erratic policy implementation in 2025 has made it challenging for businesses to make long-term commitments. That has kept the trucking sector from having its expected breakout moment this year.
Capacity is tighter in the Eastern half of the U.S. as carriers appear to be stuck on or targeting the West Coast freight.
Truckload capacity tightened noticeably during the annual CVSA International Roadcheck inspection period.
Shipping is ramping in parts of southern Asia as companies scramble to keep a buffer on inventories. How sustainable and effective is this strategy, and will it substantially mitigate the influence of prohibitive tariffs on China?
