Freight Shipments Inched Upward in June

Freight shipments as measured in ton-miles rose 0.2 percent in June from May, in the latest step of a gradual increase that began a year ago, the Transportation Department said.

The department’s Freight Transportation Services Index has risen by 4.7 in the last 13 months after dropping 15.3 percent in the previous 10 months beginning in August 2008.

The index stood at 97.9, up from a low of 93.5 in May 2009, when it reached its lowest level since 92.4 in June 1997. The index topped out at 112.9 in May 2006.

June’s TSI remains below the level of every other June since 1997. January 2010 was the first month since July 2008 in which the Freight TSI exceeded the level of the previous year.

The Freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in freight shipments in ton-miles, which are then combined into one index. The index measures the output of the for-hire freight transportation industry and consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.

The index is a seasonally adjusted index that measures changes from the monthly average of the base year of 2000. It includes historic data from 1990 to the present. The index does not include international or coastal waterborne shipments, private trucking, courier services or the U.S. Postal Service.

-- Contact Joseph Bonney at jbonney@joc.com.