Spot Truckload Rates Drift Down

National average spot truckload rates drifted downward amid weaker demand during the week ending April 18, according to DAT Solutions.

The average spot market rate fell 2 cents to $1.89 per mile for vans and 3 cents each for flatbeds ($2.20 per mile) and reefers ($2.12 per mile) compared to the previous week. Overall, available capacity increased 4.1% while freight availability fell 2.1%, which helps to account for the falling rates.

In the van market, there were 2.8% fewer loads and 4.1% more trucks posted compared to the previous week. The national van load-to-truck ratio declined 6.6% from 3.1 to 2.9 loads per truck.

Flatbed load availability was steady (down 0.6%) while capacity gained 3.7%. The resulting flatbed load-to-truck ratio was down 5.4% from 22.3 to 21.1 flatbed loads per truck. Demand for reefers lost another 3.9% last week while reefer capacity added 3.7%.

The reefer load-to-truck ratio slipped 7.3% from 6.3 to 5.9 loads per truck.

Category: Featured, General Update