The highlights from Friday’s SONAR reports are below. For more information on SONAR — the fastest freight-forecasting platform in the industry — or to request a demo, click here. Also, be sure to check out the latest SONAR update, TRAC — the freshest spot rate data in the industry.
Market watch
Phoenix
Rejection rates in Phoenix are on a steady climb that began in mid-August, matching their highest levels of the summer.
Since the beginning of September, the Outbound Tender Reject Index is up 208 basis points to 4.5%. Outbound volumes are already beginning to recover from the holiday as well, rising 9% since Wednesday.
Columbus, Ohio
In the Midwest, things don’t seem to be turning around so easily.
Outbound volume levels in Columbus were stagnant leading into the holiday, fell hard once it kicked off and are still trending downward. Volume levels fell below the 2019 Labor Day lows — not a great sign for the large Midwest freight market.
Carriers have been reluctant to return to the market as volumes declined as the Outbound Tender Reject Index pushed higher in the past week, rising 90 bps since Tuesday to equally match the national average at 5.4%.
Denver
Outbound volumes in Denver are making a quick recovery from Labor Day declines.
The Outbound Tender Volume Index for Denver is up 21.5% since Monday, but capacity remains split between contract and spot market tenders.
The Outbound Tender Reject Index hasn’t moved much this week, climbing roughly 25 bps since Tuesday to 6.5%.
Elizabeth, New Jersey
The Port of New York and New Jersey is the primary source of outbound volume for the Elizabeth market, and the recent holiday put a hold on imports cleared through customs, causing significant drops in volume. The relationship between the two is shown in the chart below.
The Port of New York and New Jersey currently holds 20.9% of port import market share, and that doesn’t seem to be slowing down.
Imported volumes were increasing leading into the holiday, and capacity in Elizabeth is taking on the challenge. Rejection rates were up 115 bps leading into September, and even after the holiday drop, outbound tender rejections are at 5.5% — just above the national average.
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.
