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Home » Monthly truck index falls hard in May
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Monthly truck index falls hard in May

July 9, 2012
Mark B. Solomon
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A monthly index of trucking conditions fell significantly in May compared to April's figures, an indication that shippers are benefiting from the carriers' inability to raise their rates amid a sluggish economic climate.

The FTR Trucking Conditions Index, published by the Nashville, Ind.-based consulting company FTR Associates, fell to a reading of 5.1 in May from 9.1 in April, dropping to the lowest level in six months. A reading above zero indicates a positive operating environment for truckers, while a reading above 10 signals what the consultancy calls a "solidly favorable range" for truck volumes, pricing, and margins.

FTR said the magnitude of the decline reflects weak pricing trends for both truckload and less-than-truckload carriers, as well as a more abundant supply of drivers than might have been expected at this point in time.

"The weakening recovery is making itself felt in lackluster growth in truck freight demand," said Larry Gross, a senior consultant at FTR.

Gross said the problem is almost entirely demand-related, noting that carriers remain operationally disciplined in terms of shedding unprofitable freight and not adding capacity to their existing fleets. Still, weak demand is making it hard for carriers to raise rates, he added.

Gross said FTR expects industry conditions—and the index—to slowly improve through the second half of the year.

Transportation Trucking
KEYWORDS FTR
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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.

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