Here are the headlines from this week in trucking:

New trailer import antidumping duties are on the way

The U.S. Department of Commerce unveiled its new preliminary duties for van-type trailer imports from Mexico and Canada as part of its antidumping investigation. Those preliminary duties range from as low as 3.21% on trailers from Utility Trailer Manufacturing de México and as high as 79.92% for trailers from Gallegos Trailers (among others).

The time until these preliminary commerce duties take effect could be more than 100 days, during which time the duties are subject to change.

Kodiak AI expanded its driverless truck partnership with Atlas Energy

Autonomous trucking developer Kodiak AI is expanding the partnership with its milestone partner Atlas Energy. Atlas Energy runs oil and gas operations in the Permian Basin, and its 2024 program with Kodiak marked what was likely the nation’s first driverless Class 8 vehicle haul.

The expanded partnership will see Atlas’s fleet of Kodiak trucks grow from 28 trucks as of March 2026 to 100 trucks by mid-2027 and will expand the reach of Atlas’s autonomous fleet across a second loading point. 

Daimler Truck is building a new domestic manufacturing facility

Daimler Truck North America (DTNA), one of the nation’s largest truck manufacturers, said that it wants to build a brand-new manufacturing facility in the U.S. The company doesn’t yet have a location picked out for the facility, but somehow still plans to begin construction later this year and begin operations by 2029.

In the spot market, for-hire rates decreased again

Broker-posted spot rates fell for the fourth week in a row, according to FTR Transportation Intelligence, down 6 cents to an average $3.32 per mile. The average broker-posted rate fell to its lowest level since May but is still up 43% year over year. 

In fuel, diesel went up by 4 cents

The national average on-highway diesel price rose to $5.35 according to the latest weekly report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), or up to $5.37 according to the latest data from AAA Motor Club.

Here’s a fuel news headline you have certainly heard before: the U.S. claimed this week that it was “very close” to a deal with Iran, and Iran disagreed. The Strait of Hormuz remains closed.

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