Shipment Volumes and Freight Expenditures Continue to Decline

According to the latest Cass Freight Index, shipment volumes and freight expenditures in North America both continued a decline which began in December. During that month, the economy abruptly reversed direction near the end of last year.

The number of shipments dropped 3.6% in January from December and was 2% lower than a year ago. Freight shipment volumes follow a predictable trend
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Per Rosalyn Wilson, a supply chain expert and senior business analyst with the management consulting firm Delcan Corporation, who provides analysis in the report,

January sees a post‐holiday drop‐off and is also the slowest month of the year. Volumes rise throughout the spring, flatten or even drop during the summer months, peak in August‐September, then fall close to the levels at which the year started. This year begins the same, with January shipment levels the lowest since 2010. Railroad carload and intermodal loadings, a good barometer of the volume of freight moving, have trended down in the last three months. Snowy January weather contributed to the depressed figures.

Freight spending dropped 5.1% in January. Much of this decrease is due to the 3.6% decline in the number of shipments. Compared to this time last year, freight expenditures are up 1.4%.

Wilson explained,

Movements in our freight expenditures index have been stronger than those for shipment volumes, indicating that there has been very modest growth in rates. The trucking sector is still unable to push rates up significantly, while the railroads have made more headway.

Another challenge which faces America’s Trucking Industry is the fact that over 1/3rd of the nation’s Freight Brokers have had their Authority Revoked, due to the new $75,000 Minimum Bond Requirement from the FMCSA, which took effect on December 1, 2013.

If you are a carrier who has done business with one of the now-closed brokerages, we want to hear from you. We can help.

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