DAT Spot Rates & Ratios, Week 31, July 28-August 3 2024

Capacity continues to tighten in a typical summer pattern

Freight Trends from DAT One and DAT iQ
Spot market data for July 28-August 3, 2024 (Week 31)

Spot rates held firm as DAT One load posts rose and capacity tightenedThe number of loads posted on DAT One rose by 1% to 1.88 million last week. That’s down 9% year over year. Truck posts fell 9% to 307,931, the lowest Week 31 total since 2017.

Dry Vans
▲  Van loads: 924,592, up 5.5% week over week
▼  Van equipment: 202,282, down 9.0%
—  Linehaul rate: $1.64 net fuel, unchanged week over week 
▲  Load-to-truck ratio: 4.6, up from 3.9

Reefers
▲  Reefer loads: 432,933, up 1.1% week over week
▼  Reefer equipment: 60,840, down 11.4%
▲  Linehaul rate: $1.97 net fuel, up 1 cent
▲  Load-to-truck ratio: 7.1, up from 6.2

Flatbeds
▼  Flatbed loads: 559,343, down 5.6% week over week
▼  Flatbed equipment: 46,995, down 4.2%
▲  Linehaul rate: $2.02 net fuel, up 2 cents
▲  Load-to-truck ratio: 11.8, up from 11.5

Market Notes from Dean Croke, DAT Principal Analyst:

• The national average dry van linehaul spot rate was flat last week and around a penny per mile higher than Week 31 last year.
• DAT One’s Top 50 van lanes (based on the number of loads moved) averaged $2.02 a mile, down almost 2 cents week over week and 38 cents higher than the overall national average.
• Demand for reefer trucks was marginally lower last week and down 21% year over year. At just under $1.97 a mile, reefer linehaul rates were almost identical to last year and 1 cent lower than the three-month trailing average.
• Despite a 5% drop last week, flatbed load post volumes were 2% higher than last year. Carrier equipment posts were down 8% week over week. The 11.8 flatbed load-to-truck ratio was almost identical to Week 31 in 2019.
• Linehaul rates exclude an amount equal to a national average fuel surcharge. 

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