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US spot market for truckload freight throughput increases by 11pc in August

TRUCKLOAD freight availability climbed last month as the number of loads on the spot market surpassed year-on-year levels for the first time since December 2014, according to the DAT North American Freight Index.

Led by a 32 per cent jump in van loads and a 31 per cent gain year on year in reefer freight, spot freight volume on the DAT network of load boards was 11 per cent higher.

But flatbed freight volume declined 16 per cent year on year, due partly to prolonged cutbacks in key flatbed sectors including oil and gas, steel, coal, construction and manufacturing.

Month-to-month spot rates increased 1.5 per cent to the second-highest level this year. Van freight added 8.7 per cent, and reefer volume surged 24 per cent, but flatbeds lost 16 per cent in August, compared to July.

But higher van and reefer freight volumes did bring higher spot rates.

Compared to August 2015, the average line haul rate fell 6.6 per cent for vans, as reefer rates dipped 5.1 per cent, and flatbed rates lost 7.2 per cent.

Diesel prices also contributed to the decline in rates. The average fuel surcharge, a component of the total rate paid to carriers, fell 17 per cent year on year, driving down the total revenue per mile by eight per cent for vans, 6.9 per cent for reefers, and 8.2 per cent for flatbeds. The surcharge is pegged to the retail price of diesel fuel.

Established in 1978, DAT operates a network of load boards serving intermediaries and carriers across North America. For more than a decade DAT has published its Freight Index, which is representative of the dynamic spot market.