ATA Truck Tonnage Index Jumped 3.6% in May

Index Rose 1.5% from May 2023

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index increased 3.6% in May after decreasing 1% in April. In May, the index equaled 115.9 (2015=100) compared with 111.9 in April.

“May was the first month since February 2023 that tonnage increased both sequentially and from a year earlier,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “While there was clearly an increase in freight before the Memorial Day holiday, it is still too early to say whether this is the start of a long-awaited recovery in the truck freight market.”

April’s decrease was revised up slightly from our May 21 press release.

Compared with May 2023, the index rose 1.5%, the first year-over-year gain in fifteen months. In April, the index was down 1.3% from a year earlier.

The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 120.4 in May, 7.1% above April. ATA’s For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index is dominated by contract freight as opposed to spot market freight.

In calculating the index, 100 represents 2015.

Trucking serves as a barometer of the U.S. economy, representing 72.6% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods. Trucks hauled 11.46 billion tons of freight in 2022. Motor carriers collected $940.8 billion, or 80.7% of total revenue earned by all transport modes.

ATA calculates the tonnage index based on surveys from its membership and has been doing so since the 1970s. This is a preliminary figure and subject to change in the final report issued around the 5th day of each month. The report includes month-to-month and year-over-year results, relevant economic comparisons, and key financial indicators.

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