Truck spot rates soar during peak season

The truckload dry goods market is witnessing a strong response from the peak season, with the National Truckload Index (NTI) reaching levels not seen in nearly two years. According to Yahoo Finance, spot rates have surged from $2.38 to $2.52 per mile, a significant increase since January 23, 2023.

Also Read: Improving carrier sentiment points to potential rate increases in truck spot market

The latest data from SONAR showed that the outbound tender rejection rate increased by 63 basis points weekly, climbing from 5.24% on December 5 to a peak of 5.87% since July 8. It increased 7.32% year-on-year to 7,926.19 points, compared with 8,551.79 points last year. These dynamics suggest that improvements are driven more by capacity factors than overall volume increases.

Further analysis by SONAR Carrier Details shows a decrease in the number of freight agencies, with 344,541 active freight agencies now representing a 4% decrease compared to 358,985 a year ago. The shrinking trucking sector presents potential challenges for shippers going forward, especially if potential economic stimulus from policy changes spurs a surge in demand by 2025.

Data from the IndexBox platform supports these insights, suggesting that while current market conditions are tighter, shippers should now consider locking in contract rates (albeit at higher levels) to ensure capacity reliability. If market demand increases significantly, carriers may use their position to influence contract terms to the detriment of shippers who have previously struggled to work with them.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform