We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy.
  • ::COVID-19 COVERAGE::
  • INDUSTRY PRESS ROOM
  • ABOUT
  • CONTACT
  • MEDIA FILE
  • Create Account
  • Sign In
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Free Newsletters
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC.
    • Podcast
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Dispatches
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Digital Edition
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • TRANSPORTATION
  • MATERIAL HANDLING
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • LIFT TRUCKS
  • PODCAST ETC.
    • Podcast
    • Blogs
      • Analytics & Big Data
      • Best Practices
      • Dispatches
      • Empowering Your Performance Edge
      • Logistics Problem Solving
      • One-Off Sound Off
      • Public Sector Logistics
      • Two Sides of the Logistics Coin
      • Submit your blog post
    • Events
    • White Papers
    • Industry Press Room
      • Upload Your News
    • New Products
      • Upload Your Product News
    • Conference Guides
    • Conference Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Mobile Apps
  • DCV-TV
    • DCV-TV 1: News
    • DCV-TV 2: Case Studies
    • DCV-TV 3: Webcasts
    • DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
    • DCV-TV 5: Solution Profiles
    • MODEX 2020
    • Upload Your Video
Home » Truckload rates edged up in Q2
newsworthy

Truckload rates edged up in Q2

July 21, 2011
Mark B. Solomon
No Comments

After a slow start to the second quarter due to economic weakness and heavy flooding, truckload prices and demand gained steam toward the end of May and into June, signaling positive trends through the rest of the summer and early fall.

Data from TransCore, a Portland, Ore.-based load-matching network that tracks freight activity on 64 U.S. traffic lanes, showed an increase in "spot market" rates—non-contract rates charged for goods that must be moved quickly—over year-earlier levels. In June and through the first week of July, the average spot market rate for freight moving in dry vans, the most frequently utilized trailer type, rose 3.6 percent over prior-year levels to $1.43 per mile. Rates for goods in moving in refrigerated vans rose 2.4 percent to $1.72 per mile. Both increases represent the biggest gains in the past 12 months, according to TransCore.

Perhaps more significant from a macroeconomic standpoint, rates for freight moving on flatbed trucks have increased 16 cents a mile from year-earlier levels, an increase of 10 percent. In addition, flatbed rates, which usually peak in March or April, have remained strong through mid-July. Dry van and "reefer" pricing, by contrast, probably peaked last month, the firm said.

Mark Montague, an industry rate analyst for TransCore, said the resilience in flatbed rates reflects continued demand for industrial plant and construction equipment that normally moves on those trucks. Montague said it would be a positive sign for the broader economy if flatbed pricing can hold firm through the end of July.

TransCore expects a strong third quarter because shippers normally spend down their capital expenditure budgets during the quarter in preparation for fourth-quarter planning for their 2012 budgets. Business will also be stimulated by generous depreciation allowances on capital equipment permitted under federal tax laws, Montague said.

"We are poised to have a pretty good third quarter," he said.

Montague said the Port of Savannah is currently the strongest market in TransCore's universe for flatbed activity. It is followed by the ports of Charleston, S.C., and Houston, and then Joliet and Rock Island, Ill. Montague also noted that flatbed activity had been strong on the West Coast of late, particularly in outbound moves originating in California.

Truckload capacity in general fluctuated within a narrow range during the second quarter, Montague said. Freight brokers, who are engaged by shippers to build and market loads for transport, have been able to obtain equipment fairly easily. At the same time, carriers and brokers are relying more on spot rates as truckers, confronting the specter of higher fuel prices and a slew of government mandates likely to drive up costs, shy away from locking themselves into contractual arrangement for fear their revenues will not keep pace with their expenses.

Spot rates currently exceed contract rates on 23 percent of the lanes that TransCore monitors. That is roughly in line with the ratio reported in the first quarter.

Transportation Trucking Truckload
KEYWORDS Port of Houston Authority Port of Savannah - Georgia Ports Authority TransCore
  • Related Articles

    Truckload contract rates strong in December; intermodal rates going lower, index projects

    Truckload spot rates soar in immediate aftermath of Harvey's Gulf rampage

    Spot truckload rates hit highest level in two years, DAT says

Marksolomon
Mark Solomon joined DC VELOCITY as senior editor in August 2008, and was promoted to his current position on January 1, 2015. He has spent more than 30 years in the transportation, logistics and supply chain management fields as a journalist and public relations professional. From 1989 to 1994, he worked in Washington as a reporter for the Journal of Commerce, covering the aviation and trucking industries, the Department of Transportation, Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court. Prior to that, he worked for Traffic World for seven years in a similar role. From 1994 to 2008, Mr. Solomon ran Media-Based Solutions, a public relations firm based in Atlanta. He graduated in 1978 with a B.A. in journalism from The American University in Washington, D.C.

Recent Articles by Mark Solomon

Coming together for road safety: interview with Joshua Girard

Off the rails

Freight rate spikes shaking up the C-suite

You must login or register in order to post a comment.

Report Abusive Comment

Most Popular Articles

  • Cold chain giant Lineage Logistics buys its own rail operator

  • Biden names dozens of senior leaders to DOT, including FMCSA and FRA

  • Outlook 2021: What’s in store for logistics supply chain?

  • Cushman & Wakefield Brokers Sale of 170 Acres plus Lease for 1MSF Build-to-Suit for Home Improvement Retailer in Commerce City, CO.

  • Thriving in the long haul: interview with Colin Yankee

Now Playing on DCV-TV

Sick agv demo thumbnail

Optimize Load Handling Tasks with Industrial Mobile Robots

DCV-TV 4: Viewer Contributed
Intelligent sensors detect the presence of goods, check for empty shelves, or the correct alignment on the mobile platform towards the freight. The solutions range from simple detection sensors, thorough measuring devices, and 2D LiDAR sensors.

FEATURED WHITE PAPERS

  • Proven Benefits: A Compendium of Slotting Optimization Success Snapshots

  • Bridging Information Gaps in Dock and Yard Operations

  • How Intelligent Sensor Solutions Turn Data Into Action

  • Order picking Solutions: Understanding Your Options

View More

Subscribe to DC Velocity Magazine

GET YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION
  • SUBSCRIBE
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • ADVERTISING
  • CUSTOMER CARE
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • STAFF
  • PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright ©2021. All Rights ReservedDesign, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing