Spot rates rise in May as shipper demands increase

The flatbed load-to-truck ratio increased 3% to 111 loads per truck, which ties the record set during the first week of April.

Fleet Owner Staff

May 10, 2018

2 min read

The number of spot market loads on the DAT network of load boards rose 1.3% and truck posts fell 1.0% during the week ending May 5, reflecting stronger shipper demand. National average rates for all three equipment types responded, moving higher compared to the previous week:

Van: $2.18/mile, up 2 cents week over week and 48 cents higher than a year ago
Flatbed: $2.72/mile, up 7 cents. This is the highest flatbed rate ever recorded in DAT Trendlines
Reefer: $2.48/mile, up 6 cents. This rate is 5 cents above the April average and 51 cents higher than one year ago

Spot truckload freight availability during the month of April was 3.9% higher compared to March and 100% higher year over year. Available capacity was up 2.2% compared to March and 7.5% year over year.

Van overview: Van load posts increased 1% last week while van posts increased 3%. That caused the van load-to-truck ratio to gain 1% to 6.2 loads per truck. Key markets:

Los Angeles: $2.42/mile, up 7 cents on a 2.8% increase in volume
Memphis: $2.67/mile, up 9 cents with a 3.3% volume increase

Several van lanes showed higher rates:

Memphis to Columbus, Ohio: $2.76/mile, up 19 cents
Atlanta to Philadelphia: $2.95/mile, up 14 cents
Charlotte to Buffalo: $2.94/mile, up 17 cents

Www Fleetowner Com Sites Fleetowner com Files 051018 Dat Spot Average May 5 2018 1

Flatbed overview: Nationally, the number of flatbed load posts was unchanged while truck posts declined 3%. The flatbed load-to-truck ratio increased 3% to 111 loads per truck, which ties the record set during the first week of April. The flatbed load-to-truck ratio has been above 100 loads per truck for six weeks in a row.

Reefer Overview: Reefer load posts increased 10% while truck posts declined 2%, which sent the national reefer load-to-truck ratio up 12% to 9.2 loads per truck. With produce harvests heating up, Los Angeles ($3.02/mile, up 11 cents), Miami ($3.06/mile, up 59 cents), and Lakeland, Fla ($2.43/mile, up 40 cents) were among major reefer markets with sizable gains in the average outbound rate.