Spot truckload capacity tightened last week as demand increased

DAT Truckload Freight Trends: Nov 17-23, 2024 (Week 47) – Tighter capacity, higher spot rates

Freight Trends from DAT One and DAT iQ
Spot market data for Nov 17-23, 2024 (Week 47)

Spot truckload capacity tightened last week as demand increased
Available capacity on the spot market continued to tighten last week, with the number of trucks on the DAT One marketplace falling 10.3% to 306,216 compared to the previous week. At 1.86 million, the number of loads posted on the network was 10.5% higher, led by a 15.2% jump in van load posts. 

Spot market activity typically rises before Thanksgiving and the various holiday sales events. Reflecting higher demand, load-to-truck ratios and linehaul rates increased for all three equipment categories.

Dry Vans
▲  Van loads: 896,959, up 15.2% week over week
▼  Van equipment: 201,195, down 9.8%
▲  Linehaul rate: $1.67 net fuel, up 1 cent 
▲  Load-to-truck ratio: 4.5, up from 3.5

Reefers
▲  Reefer loads: 430,236, up 7.8% week over week
▼  Reefer equipment: 62,896, down 11.1%
▲  Linehaul rate: $2.06 net fuel, up 2 cents
▲  Load-to-truck ratio: 6.8, up from 5.6

Flatbeds
▲  Flatbed loads: 532,072, up 5.5% week over week
▼  Flatbed equipment: 42,125, down 11.3%
▲  Linehaul rate: $1.97 net fuel, up 1 cent
▲  Load-to-truck ratio: 12.6, up from 10.6

Market Notes from Dean Croke, DAT iQ industry analyst:

A first for 2024, USDA reports a shortage of trucks: For the first time this year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported a shortage of trucks in its weekly Fruit and Vegetable Truck Rate Report, amplifying how soft and oversupplied the reefer market has been year to date. The USDA’s Nov. 19 report said trucks were in short supply in two Pacific Northwest markets: Twin Falls, Idaho, along the Snake River, and the Columbia River Basin in Washington. Both areas produce potatoes and dry onions. That USDA report is here: https://www.ams.usda.gov/mnreports/fvwtrk.pdf.

Quirks of the freight calendar: There are only 18 business days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the fewest since 2019 (and 2013 before that), and just three full business weeks before Christmas. The compressed schedule and risk of delays due to traffic, weather, and congestion at receiving docks make long-haul freight more desirable for truckers who want to keep moving. Many independent carriers who use the load board will look to route home (or some other desirable place) by the Saturday before Christmas, which may make trucks on the spot market particularly hard to find from Dec. 20-24.

 

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