ACT Research reports demand fundamentals in the US freight market are beginning to recover and data suggests with capacity starting to tighten, the industry is approaching the bottom of the freight cycle.
“After a long soft patch, we see the U.S. freight transportation industry on the verge of a new cycle as we begin to transition from the bottoming phase into the early phase of the freight cycle in the months to come,” Tim Denoyer, ACT Research’s vice president and senior analyst, said in the Cass Transportation Index Report April 2023.
The latest release of the ACT Freight Forecast report points out that the freight cycle is “still weak” and truckload spot rates are nearing the bottom.
According to the report, warm weather appears to have pulled some freight shipments into January and February instead of shipping in March and April. When seasonally adjusted, the index declined 1.3% from month to month in April, which followed a 3.8% drop in March.
“With produce season arriving late this year and the freight market likely passing the peak of the destock, freight demand is near the bottom,” said Denoyer. “With inflation easing, improving real income trends will allow for a bit more holiday spending this year, when even less destocking will mean more freight volume.”
Full report here.