Economic forces, consumer demand, seasonality, natural disasters and myriad other factors contribute to transport's cyclical market.
The charts below show the latest data on Class 8 truck orders, trailer orders, monthly tonnage, linehaul rates and load-to-truck ratios. We'll update this page frequently as new data is released.
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Tonnage
The ATA Truck Tonnage Index decreased 1.6% in June to 113.5 compared to the previous month when seasonally adjusted, per a news release. The organization also revised May's figure downward to 115.3, from a previous estimate of 115.9.
“While giving back some of the gain from May, it appears that truck freight tonnage is slowly going in the right direction since hitting a recent low in January,” ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said in a monthly report.
For-hire truck tonnage index
Load-to-truck ratios
Load-to-truck ratios from DAT Freight & Analytics serve as indicators of supply and demand in the spot market. The ratio is calculated based on the number of load posts compared to the number of truck posts on the DAT One load board. Ratio changes can signal upcoming fluctuations in spot rates.
Load-to-truck ratios fell across equipment types for the week beginning July 14, compared to the previous seven-day period. DAT reported:
- Dry van decreased from 4.7 to 4 loads per truck
- Reefer dropped from nearly 7.1 to 6.3 loads per truck
- Flatbed fell from 14.2 to 12.5 loads per truck
“The number of loads posted on DAT One decreased by almost 12% to 1.87 million last week, a sign of summer seasonality,” DAT said in a statement. “Total truck posts increased 0.7% to 330,208.”
Load-to-truck ratios
Spot linehaul rates
DAT’s linehaul rates measure a seven-day moving average for spot rates in dry van, reefer and flatbed hauls. They often reflect the balance of supply and demand in the spot market. The rates are derived from DAT’s RateView database and do not include a fuel surcharge.
National benchmark averages tended to fall across equipment types the week beginning July 14, compared to the previous week. Per DAT:
- Dry van fell by 2 cents to $1.65
- Reefer was flat at $2
- Flatbed dropped by 3 cents to $2.02
“Even though flatbed load post volumes dropped by 8% last week, they remain 17% higher than last year,” DAT iQ Principal Analyst Dean Croke said. “Directionally, flatbed linehaul rates are following solid seasonal trends.”
Spot linehaul rates
Trailers
Net trailer orders dropped by 17% percent to 4,788 units in June, according to FTR data. Year over year, orders were up 44%. That meant orders were weaker than seasonal expectations, FTR wrote in a monthly report.
“Despite the large year-over-year (y/y) gain, June 2024’s net order total nearly tied May 2020 for the third lowest level in the data,” FTR wrote. “This decrease was driven mainly by a substantial drop in gross orders, although cancellations as a share of gross orders remained above 30%.”
Net U.S. trailer orders
Truckload linehaul rates
The Truckload Linehaul Index from Cass measures per-mile linehaul rates. In the chart below, the baseline is 100, which represents conditions in 2005. Rates fluctuate as a result of supply, demand and balance (or a lack thereof) in the market, but they also include factors such as fuel prices and insurance costs.
The index, which includes spot and contract freight, decreased by 1% in June compared to May, Cass reported. That represented a 2.4% decline year over year.
“While this has narrowed from a 15% y/y decline a year ago, it seems unlikely to turn positive quickly,” ACT Research VP and Senior Analyst Tim Denoyer wrote for Cass' monthly report.
Truckload Linehaul Index
Class 8 orders
Preliminary Class 8 net orders dropped to 13,100 units in June, from 18,900 units in May, according to a report from FTR. That was slightly down from 13,800 units a year ago.
FTR said the decline fell within seasonal expectations. “The y/y decrease is the first this year, but it is relatively insignificant because it is modest and because of the strong order performance over the previous five months,” the firm said.