Truckload rates continue to show negative growth in May

Truckload pricing dipped another 1.2 percent in May 2016 compared to the same 2015 period following declines of 0.6 percent and 2.3 percent in March and April, respectively, according to the latest Cass Truckload Linehaul Index.    Truckload rates fell another 1.2 percent in May 2016 compared with the previous year following a 0.6 percent year-over-year decrease in March and a 2.3 percent drop in April, according to the latest Cass Truckload Linehaul Index.
   Cass said the March pricing decline was the first since May 2010, but pricing growth has steadily contracted over the past 12 months, from 5.1 percent year-over-year growth in March 2015 to 3.8 percent in April, 3.5 percent in May, 3.6 percent in July and June, 3.7 percent in August, 3.2 percent in September, 1.9 percent in October, 1.6 percent in November, 1.1 percent in December, and just 0.4 percent and 0.5 percent in January and February, respectively.
   The logistics payment solutions provider attributed the decrease in rates primarily to low demand levels and excess capacity.
   Factors contributing to excess capacity include driver pay increases, overall fleet growth, a reduction in carrier bankruptcies and an easing of the 34-hour restart rule, according to Cass.