peak season

Spending exceeded expectations, sending tender rejections higher than they’ve been in years.

Intermodal volumes are robust, even past peak retail season. What does it mean for 2025?

RXO CEO Drew Wilkerson shares insights on managing peak-season demand and on the 2025 outlook for the dynamic logistics industry.

FreightWaves got an inside look at DHL Express’ big parcel center at Miami International Airport as the global logistics integrator prepared for the holiday shipping season, when volumes are 40% to 50% higher each day than the rest of the year.

In this edition: the logistics behind the Rockefeller Center tree lighting, and consumer predictions for peak season are locked in.

UPS’s financial performance bounced back in the third quarter, but it flagged macroeconomic weakness and in-store shopping as potential headwinds for fourth-quarter volumes.

As eastbound import traffic continues to grow, Union Pacific announced surcharges for its premium EMP and UMAX services out of the Southern California gateway.

The outlook for supply chain congestion this fall led importers to move holiday goods earlier than usual through Long Beach, the second-busiest U.S. port.

After decades of a steadfast peak season with a predictable time frame, the past few years have seen anything but. DHL Global Forwarding’s CEO offers his insights on this year’s peak season and whether it has already passed.

Will shippers pull forward freight to avoid East Coast port labor disputes?

Today, peak seasons and traditional consumer habits are something entirely different than they once were. The CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Americas gives insight on how DHL is handling it and what shippers should do.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Monday published a notice in the Federal Register that the state of Florida is seeking an exemption to the CDL testing regulation pertaining to skills testing.

On Thursday FreightWaves presented the FreightTech 25 awards, which were chosen independently by a panel of CEOs, industry leaders, academics and investors who scored the companies. Chattanooga, Tennessee-based accounting and auditing firm HHM administered the vote. The awards recognize the most innovative and disruptive companies in the freight technology sector.

Online sales are expected to grow between 7% and 9% over 2022 levels, the National Retail Federation says.

In light of today’s soft economic conditions and high inflation rates, companies should have plans in place for providing standout service without blowing their own budgets going into peak season.

Based on current port data compiled by American Shipper, the East Coast and Gulf ports are strongly favored over West Coast ports.

The decline of air cargo is less severe than earlier this year, but a bearish case for a counter-seasonal, second-half dip is gaining momentum as freight forwarders undercut each other on prices to win customers.

This year’s peak season could see West Coast labor disruptions coincide with Panama Canal water levels impeding cargo flows to the East Coast.

More signs are surfacing that the second half of the year won’t be a panacea to the international freight recession. Seko Logistics says there won’t be a surge in orders that fuels transportation spending.

The holidays are quickly approaching, and shoppers are checking off their gift lists. This year, however, the festive frenzy has not been strong enough to create a traditional peak season effect.

Route-planning platform Circuit surveyed delivery drivers about their biggest pet peeves around the holidays.

Each year since the onset of the pandemic, peak season has looked a little different. What should retailers expect this year?

As more retailers implement fees to return items purchased online, a new survey shows consumers are pushing back.

A weaker-than-normal shipping season is hurting Cathay Pacific Cargo’s ability to recover from the pandemic.

Freight Club leverages the volume of all clients in order to get enterprise rates from its network of more than 30 well-known carriers.

Uber just rolled out several features ahead of the holidays, including a new Holiday Shop and an upgrade to Uber Connect.

Amazon has completed 5 million deliveries with Rivian’s custom electric delivery vans since the program launched in July.

According to research from PayPal, retailers and shoppers see eye to eye on returns more than you’d think.

Supply chain disruptions and inflation have changed consumer behavior and retailer strategies, leading to a longer holiday shopping season.

GXO Logistics plans to add 22,000 employees to support the holiday shopping season, with many of the positions extending into the new year.

While consumers are indicating they may be spending less on holiday shopping this year, many merchants are expecting something different.

Freight brokers and 3PLs should focus on accommodating carriers’ technology needs in order to improve service levels.

One of the most interesting takeaways in the chart above details how traditional freight brokerages that have built and marketed their own apps have taken the lead in downloads over third-party load boards.

Inbound container volumes into the U.S. bode poorly for future trucking volumes. Trucking is the critical node for transporting goods, handling over 70% of freight in the U.S. at a given time.

Peak season is becoming more of a black box every year, and the U.S. Postal Service is buckling up.

Management teams from a couple of the nation’s largest fleets share their thoughts on peak season and rates during an investor conference.

Businesses large and small should begin preparations now to anticipate the unique challenges of peak season.

UPS posted its best quarterly operating profit in its history. It also declared a 49% dividend increase.

After a year of record demand, shippers are hesitant to pull their feet off the accelerators heading into the “slow” season.

Efficiency is the key to keeping costs low and customer satisfaction high. This becomes more and more relevant as consumer expectations shift and strengthen in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

An Office of Inspector General report said a shortage of commercial truck drivers may compromise the Postal Service’s surface transport capability.

With demand outpacing supply all year, the entirety of 2021 has mirrored peak season conditions. Despite these challenges ahead of the holiday season, there are low-cost solutions and long-term investments shippers can apply to improve operations.

Pitney Bowes plans to hire thousands of seasonal employees for holiday peak season, with many being offered the opportunity to remain with the company following the holidays.

Modern Shipper spoke with several supply chain executives to get their takes on what could be the most chaotic holiday season in recent memory.

When shippers are using several cobbled-together solutions with hit-or-miss integrations, they miss out on opportunities to optimize their business practices and workflows.

Many of the conversations surrounding peak season headwinds center around shippers, but carriers are also faced with challenges during this time.

Sourcing capacity will likely prove difficult through at least the first quarter of 2022 as supply and demand struggle to strike a balance during the peak season.

During a year characterized by historically tight capacity, shippers should enter peak season prepared for even harsher conditions.

With supply chain delays hitting retailers hard, Modern Shipper spoke with Kwontified CEO Elaine Kwon to figure out what that means for consumers.

Hershey said that typically, up to 10% of PGT’s drivers may pivot to dry van for the winter months.

It is clear that shippers need to pinpoint proactive solutions to their peak season woes if they hope to safeguard their bottom lines and maintain positive relationships with their customers in the upcoming months.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that distribution and logistics employment from 2019 to 2022 is expected to grow almost 30%.

FreightWaves’ Anthony Smith talks about the ways shippers are building reliant supply chains with Nate Shutes, VP of global fulfillment and logistics at Blu Dot, during FreightWaves’ OceanWaves Summit.

“If I’m optimistic, you’re looking six months into the future” before congestion and capacity challenges start to subside, says Vespucci Maritime CEO Lars Jensen.

There are two ways to transport goods overseas: ocean or air. Port congestion and shipping delays are forcing companies to shift to faster air transport, which releases more emissions, costs more per unit and has its own capacity constraints.

Sustainability is a growing topic of conversation in the freight industry. FreightWaves asked experts if this focus will continue as supply chains are put to the ultimate stress test.

Echo’s Sean Burke advises building as much flexibility as possible into the planning process this fall.

Seasonal hiring points to another big peak season

The company said it will make many job offers within 30 minutes of receiving an application.

More container ships are stuck at anchor off California than ever before. The gridlock is about to get even worse.

Luke Falasca and Kyle Taylor look at the metrics showing peak season may already be upon us.

As this year’s peak season gets underway, dislocations in the supply chain are increasing. However, this is really nothing new as the industry has been in peak mode for a year.

New customers will need to onboard by that date to get holiday delivery services.

Double-digit surcharge hikes might be minimized or avoided if customers can adjust their shipping timetables.

The levies to hit hardest on heavier parcels going longer distances.

The company will add Missouri, Illinois and Kansas and deepen coverage in Louisiana and Arkansas, effective in early September.

Finding space on an international aircraft to move one’s freight is no easy task. Large shippers with enough volume are just renting entire planes to ensure their stuff can get from here to there.

There’s no time for deliberation these days if you want to get high-value cargo shipped by air. It’s a strong seller’s market in the air cargo world. If you see it, book it and don’t worry about the price.

A Prologis and MIT study said the holiday peak season in 2020 was the most environmentally friendly yet. E-commerce dominated 2020 consumer buying trends, drastically reducing the number of individual trips to the store.

With the holidays around the corner, here is an overview of UPS, USPS, FedEx and Amazon shipping deadlines for a delivery date of Dec. 25.

Gateway remains cautious and braced “for any shocks still to come.”

Logistics professionals said to expect U.S.-Mexico border capacity to be tight the rest of the year and into 2021.

In today’s edition of The Daily Dash, peak season could be among the most volatile in years if current data trends continue. Plus, grading the success of the president, and Amazon’s logistics network just keeps growing.

Uncertainty will be the challenge to overcome as 2020 comes to a close. DDC’s Donna Kintop suggests carriers pay close attention to rising freight volumes, the ongoing pandemic and political tensions both domestic and abroad.

The technology needs to be modular, meaning you can pick and choose how you want to instrument your fleet.

In today’s edition of The Daily Dash, Amazon is altering the industry’s perspective of peak freight season. Plus, Women in Trucking named the top employers for women and XPO could be looking to downsize.

XPO’s Jacobs said facilities will be two of the most highly automated ever built.

Lockers available in all 1,700 stores by March.

Increases go into effect Oct. 18.

UPS to impose a range of surcharges depending on volume.

In this week’s wrap-up, FreightWaves spoke to Larry Mullne of Allied Alloys in Houston to get insights into pre-holiday operations.

Markets from Los Angeles and Ontario to Yuma, Salt Lake City, and Minnesota have suddenly tightened as routing becomes directionally constrained.

Bad weather drives down delivery performance during second week of peak

Top four parcel delivery firms perform well in first week of peak season, ShipMatrix says

Peak season is more like a mini-peak this year for air cargo.

Will markets remain tight into the first quarter or soften right after Thanksgiving?

FreightWaves Market Expert Zach Strickland speaks with Associate Editor JP Hampstead about this week’s rate changes as we enter peak season and Thanksgiving.

Although air freight prices have been edging upwards, sources suggest the 2019 peak season might be short-lived.

The October Logistics Managers’ Index hits record low, suggesting peak shipping season may disappoint.

UPS expects tsunami of returns this holiday season

Amazon.com. Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) late Thursday reported third-quarter revenue of $70 billion, a 24% increase over the same period in 2018, as well as a 46% surge in worldwide shipping costs as it made massive transportation and logistics investments to upgrade delivery times and to take more control of the shipping process amid continued demand for […]

Salesforce drew on three years of data from 4,500 e-commerce sites to generate its forecast.

Flexport’s head of airfreight believes a small bump in demand out of Asia could result from new U.S. tariffs, while higher fuel prices will push up air cargo costs.

While still mostly brown, the shirt is now made with breathable, micro-pique fabric that ensures comfort in hotter temperatures.

FedEx passes on peak season surcharges but will hit the outsized stiff hard. Rates also to rise for 2020 services.

Werner has seen freight fundamentals improve recently and is expecting the truck market to tighten as new regulation is implemented.

UPS to hire 100k employees for peak season, and will expand tuition reimbursement plan

J.B. Hunt imposes peak season intermodal surcharge to recoup costs of returning empties