DAT Truckload Volume Index: June signals that spot rates have hit bottom
18 July 2023 - 1:53AM
Business Wire
Truckload freight volumes and spot rates held firm in June while
contract rates fell to their lowest points in almost two years,
according to DAT Freight & Analytics, operators of the
industry’s largest online freight marketplace and DAT iQ data
analytics service.
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June signals that spot rates have hit
bottom (Graphic: DAT Freight & Analytics)
“The gap between spot and contract rates was the narrowest since
April 2022,” said Ken Adamo, DAT Chief of Analytics. “Rates for van
and refrigerated freight increased for the third straight month,
and volumes were almost unchanged from May. These are signs that
spot truckload prices have reached the bottom of the current
freight cycle.”
The national benchmark contract rate for dry van freight has not
increased for 12 consecutive months. At $2.58 per mile, the rate
was 70 cents lower than a year ago.
Volumes held steady in June
The DAT Truckload Volume Index (TVI), an indicator of loads
moved during a given month, decreased marginally for van and
refrigerated (“reefer”) freight and increased slightly for flatbed
loads:
- Van TVI: 230, down 1% from May
- Reefer TVI: 167, down 3% from May
- Flatbed TVI: 267, up 2% from May
Van, reefer rates improved
On the spot market, the national benchmark rates for van and
reefer freight rose while the flatbed rate declined compared to
May:
- Spot van rate: $2.08 per mile, up 3 cents, the first increase
in five months
- Spot reefer rate: $2.47 a mile, up 3 cents
- Spot flatbed rate: $2.61 a mile, down 4 cents
Van line haul rates averaged $1.65 a mile, up 4 cents compared
to May, while reefer line haul rates averaged $2.01 a mile, up 5
cents. The flatbed line haul rate dipped 2 cents to $2.10 a mile.
Line haul rates subtract an amount equal to an average fuel
surcharge. Lower diesel prices in June pushed fuel surcharges to
17-month lows, averaging 43 cents a mile for van freight, 46 cents
for reefers, and 51 cents for flatbeds.
Load-to-truck ratios reflected seasonal demand
Load-to-truck ratios reflect truckload supply and demand on the
DAT One marketplace:
- The national average van load-to-truck ratio was 2.6, meaning
there were 2.6 loads for every van posted to the DAT One
marketplace last month. The ratio was 2.5 in May and 3.9 in June
2022.
- The reefer ratio averaged 3.8, up from 3.6 in May and down from
7.0 in June 2022.
- The flatbed ratio fell to 9.7, down from 11.7 in May and 37.6
in June 2022.
“Demand for truckload services typically slows at this time of
year, but this could change quickly given the threat of strikes in
the parcel and less-than-truckload sectors,” Adamo said. “Shippers
are putting contingency plans in place and would look to freight
brokers and carriers on the spot market to keep their line haul
operations moving. Demand for trucks would jump, especially around
Louisville, Memphis, Indianapolis, Dallas and other major parcel
hubs.”
About the DAT Truckload Volume Index
The DAT Truckload Volume Index reflects the change in the number
of loads with a pickup date during that month; the actual index
number is normalized each month to accommodate any new data sources
without distortion. A baseline of 100 equals the number of loads
moved in January 2015, as recorded in DAT RateView, a truckload
pricing database and analysis tool with rates paid on an average of
3 million loads per month.
Spot truckload rates are negotiated for each load and paid to
the carrier by a freight broker. National average spot rates are
derived from payments to carriers by freight brokers, third-party
logistics providers and other transportation buyers for hauls of
250 miles or more with a pickup date during the month reported.
DAT’s rate analysis is based on $150 billion in annualized freight
transactions.
About DAT Freight & Analytics
DAT Freight & Analytics operates the largest truckload
freight marketplace in North America. Shippers, transportation
brokers, carriers, news organizations and industry analysts rely on
DAT for market trends and data insights based on more than 400
million freight matches and a database of $150 billion in annual
market transactions.
Founded in 1978, DAT is a business unit of Roper Technologies
(Nasdaq: ROP), a constituent of the S&P 500 and Fortune 1000
indices.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230717037287/en/
Annabel Reeves Corporate Communications, DAT Freight &
Analytics PR@dat.com / annabel.reeves@dat.com; 503-501-0143
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