BEAVERTON, Ore.–( BUSINESS WIRE )–Truck demand in the spot market increased in December, pointing to solid retail and grocery sales ahead of the holidays, said DAT Freight & Analytics, which operates the DAT One freight market and DAT iQ data analysis service.
The load index for refrigerated vans and trucks (TVI) increased modestly compared to November:
- Outside TVI: 260, an increase of 2.4%
- Refrigerated TVI: 220, an increase of 3%
- Flat TVI: 237, down 5%
From year to year, the TVI of vans and refrigerated trucks increased by 12% and 20%, respectively, and the TVI with a flatbed was higher by 7%.
December freight volumes were strong despite calendar irregularities, said Ken Adamo, DAT’s head of analytics, noting that Christmas fell on a Wednesday and there were only three non-holiday weeks between Thanksgiving and the end of the year. A combination of seasonal volumes, fewer shipping days and truckers taking time off for the holidays led to higher spot prices compared to November. Net fuel, van rate was the highest monthly average since January 2023.
Truckload rates have moved higher
National average spot rates increased for all three types of equipment:
- Spot van: $2.11 per mile ($1.74 net fuel), up 9 cents from November
- Spot cooler: $2.47 ($2.06 net fuel), up 2 cents
- Spot flat vehicle: $2.39 ($1.94 net of fuel), up 2 cents
National average contract prices for vans and trucks increased last month:
- Contract van rate: $2.42 per mile, up 2 cents
- Cold storage contract rate: $2.74 per mile, unchanged
- Flat rate negotiated rate: $3.06 per mile, up 3 cents
The spread between spot prices and contract rates for vans and refrigerated trucks narrowed for the fourth straight month and was the smallest since March 2022, when spot rates entered a severely deflationary period, Adamo said. When the difference between spot and long-term contract rates narrows, it’s a signal that capacity is shrinking and that bargaining power is shifting toward truckers.
About the DAT load volume index
DAT The truck load volume index reflects the change in the number of loads with pickup dates during that month. A base value of 100 equals the number of loads moved in January 2015, as recorded in DAT RateView, a truckload rate database and analysis tool with rates paid for an average of 3 million loads per month.
DAT reference spot rates are derived from invoice data for shipments of 250 miles or more with a pickup date during the reported month. Prices of scheduled transport subtract an amount equal to the average fuel charge.
About DAT Freight & Analytics
DAT Freight & Analytics operates the largest freight marketplace and freight data analytics service in North America. Shippers, freight brokers, carriers, news organizations and industry analysts rely on DAT for market trends and data insights based on more than 400 million annual freight pairings and a database of $150 billion in annual market freight transactions.
Founded in 1978, DAT is a business unit of Roper Technologies (Nasdaq: NASDAQ: ), a , , and Fortune 1000 company. DAT is headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon. Visit dat.com for more information
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DAT contact
Georgija Jablon
PR@dat.com / georgia.jablon@dat.com
Source: DAT Freight & Analytics
