• Spot market rates respond to freight volume’s strength nationally

    Learn more about stronger shipper demand nationally, reflected in DAT Solutions' latest spot freight market tally.
    May 14, 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, 2018, reflecting stronger shipper demand. National average rates for all three equipment types responded, moving higher compared with the previous week:

    •Reefer—$2.48/mile, up 6 cents. This rate is 5 cents above the April average and 51 cents higher than one year ago.

    •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.

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

    Reefer load posts climbed 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 FL ($3.06/mile, up 59 cents), and Lakeland FL ($2.43/mile, up 40 cents) were among major reefer markets with sizable gains in the average outbound rate.

    Van load posts inched up 1% the week ending May 5 while van posts advanced 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 OH—$2.76/mile, up 19 cents

    —Atlanta to Philadelphia— $2.95/mile, up 14 cents

    —Charlotte to Buffalo NY—$2.94/mile, up 17 cents

    Nationally, the number of flatbed load posts was unchanged while truck posts dropped 3%. The flatbed load-to-truck ratio was up 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.

    This report is generated using DAT RateView, a service that provides real-time reports on prevailing spot market and contract rates, as well as historical rate and capacity trends. RateView’s database is comprised of more than $45 billion in freight bills in 65,000-plus lanes.

    For the latest spot market load availability and rate information, visit www.dat.com/trendlines.

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