SONAR Sightings for Sept. 2: Outbound volumes nose-dive in Indianapolis heading into holiday weekend

The Outbound Tender Volume Index catapulted 14.5% overnight into September. Inbound loads are starting to trend downward, though, dropping 4% since the start of the week.

The disparity between inbound and outbound volume levels heaved the Headhaul Index up 167.2% to 33.7, its highest score since April. 

The boost in outbound volumes has tightened capacity and increased rejections 190 bps since the start of the week to 7.1% — well above the national average of 5.6%.

“We are showing a 3-to-1 truck ratio out of this market this Friday,” said Justin Wandell, vice president of logistics at Axle Logistics. “There is still plenty of capacity headed into the holiday weekend, and the spike looks more elevated due to compressed holiday volume. The key is to cover the trucks early and get them moving before the holiday weekend starts.”

NTI as a point of reference

The National Truckload Index is a daily look at how spot rates in specific lanes hold up in comparison to the national average, giving carriers and brokers an idea of which lanes to gravitate toward or avoid.

Lane to watch: Memphis, Tennessee to Greenville

Outbound tender volumes leaving Memphis are up 16.7% this week, and spot rates from Memphis to Greenville remained consistent leading into September at or around $2.94 a mile.

Rejections from Memphis to Greenville are beginning to trend down, however, falling roughly 40 bps to 5.8%. This decrease in rejections will begin to put downward pressure on these elevated spot rates, but they still remain 32 cents above the national average with a confidence score of 3.

Watch: Carrier update