Trucking news and briefs for Friday, Sept. 23, 2022:
Trucking conditions improved in July but remain slightly negative, according to FTR.
Although the index was just below the index’s base of zero, it was the third consecutive month of negative readings -- a situation that had not occurred since March-May 2020. FTR expects that trucking market conditions are in for a long period of moderate weakness.
“Trucking companies had a great run, but freight dynamics clearly have softened,” said Avery Vise, FTR’s vice president of trucking. “While the economy and freight markets look more resilient than many observers fear, risks are weighted to the downside. Market weakness will not be uniform, but the type of freight is hardly the only differentiator.”
Vise said carriers with more contract freight “should continue to fare significantly better than the total market,” and carriers that have managed costs well “certainly will be in a better position to prosper.”
The TCI tracks the changes representing five major conditions in the U.S. truck market: freight volumes, freight rates, fleet capacity, fuel prices and financing costs. The individual metrics are combined into a single index indicating the industry’s overall health. A positive score represents good, optimistic conditions. Conversely, a negative score represents bad, pessimistic conditions. Readings near zero are consistent with a neutral operating environment, and double-digit readings in either direction suggest significant operating changes are likely.
Freight volume was flat while productivity was down in August, according to the latest release of ACT’s For-Hire Trucking Index. The index also showed the Supply-Demand Balance and capacity rising marginally.
