Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

newsworthy

Monthly truck index falls hard in May

Slowing economy taking toll on demand for trucking, says FTR Associates.

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.

The Latest

More Stories

Companies double down on resilience as trade complexities rise

Companies double down on resilience as trade complexities rise

Most retail, wholesale, and manufacturing businesses are focused on fundamentally restructuring their supply chains to stay ahead of economic uncertainty. That’s according to results of the second annual State of Supply Chain report from supply chain solutions platform provider Relex Solutions, released Tuesday.

Relex surveyed nearly 600 professionals from retail, consumer packaged goods (CPG), and wholesale businesses across seven countries and found that 60% said they are overhauling their supply chains due to tariff uncertainty and market volatility.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

Raising the bar on inventory visibility

Raising the bar on inventory visibility

Ask 10 warehousing experts about the optimal level of inventory visibility, and you'll get a dozen different responses.

Sure, most would agree on the importance of accurate inventory counts—knowing exactly how many items are in every carton, crate, and pallet stored in the facility. But depending on what type of goods the warehouse handles, opinions will vary widely on how much accuracy is good enough and what's the best technique for counting.

Keep ReadingShow less

15 candles

When a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Port-au-Prince, Haiti, in 2010, a fledgling humanitarian group knew its day had come—after months of planning, it would finally be able to take its model live and see how well it worked. Formed a year earlier to support humanitarian relief efforts, that group, Airlink, had established a network of airline partners it could call on to provide free or discounted airlift in times of crisis. As it turned out, the model held up in testing. In the weeks following the earthquake, Airlink successfully coordinated the movement of more than 2,000 doctors and nurses and more than 40 shipments of aid totaling more than 500,000 pounds into the disaster zone.

Fifteen years later, the group is still carrying out that mission—but on a much larger scale. Airlink's network today includes over 200 aid organizations and over 50 commercial and charter airlines. Since its inception, the group has flown 13,500 relief workers and transported 18 million pounds of humanitarian cargo, directly helping 60 million people impacted by natural and man-made disasters.

Keep ReadingShow less

How risky is your route?

When planning routes for their delivery trucks, fleet managers—or more likely, their route planning software systems—consider factors like mileage, road height and weight restrictions, traffic conditions, and weather. They can now add another variable to the mix, thanks to a new tool that calculates the chances that a load might be stolen along the way.

Developed by New Jersey-based risk assessment firm Verisk Analytics, CargoNet RouteScore API generates a cargo theft "risk score" that provides a relative measure of probability that crime and loss will occur along any given route in the U.S. and Canada. Using a proprietary algorithm, the tool rates routes on a scale from 1 to 100—with 1 representing the lowest likelihood of theft—based on risk factors such as cargo type, value, length of haul, origin, destination, day of the week, and the theft history of specific truck stops.

Keep ReadingShow less

The rise of designer diesel

Drivers typically choose a specific blend of gasoline based on their car's engine, picking high-octane fuel for a sports car and regular gas for the family sedan. Now a company has launched a similar range of products for diesel fuel, saying the offerings are calibrated for vehicles like commercial trucks.

That company, Nevada-based Advanced Refining Concepts LLC (ARC), will launch two new products, GDiesel Lightning and GDiesel Thunder, by mid-year, the company said in January. According to the firm, GDiesel Lightning is a lighter, faster-igniting diesel fuel than the classic mix and is designed specifically for urban start-stop operations—think delivery vehicles, light trucks, city buses, and passenger vehicles. GDiesel Thunder is a heavier, higher energy-content fuel made for steadier and more continuous engine operating modes, making it suitable for long-haul trucking or rail and marine applications.

Keep ReadingShow less