Trucking Spot Market Up 10 Percent in October

Freight volume in trucking’s spot market rose 10 percent in October, said TransCore, which reported the first year-over-year increase this year in the TransCore Freight Index.

But the sudden rise reflects the depth of the collapse last fall more than an economy recovering strength. The TFI declined 2.3 percent from September to October after rising 10.5 percent from August to September. ATA’s For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index in September showed a similar pattern, dipping 0.3 percent after increasing 1.2 percent in August and July. That could indicate an uneven road to recovery.

The TFI is based on 50 million spot market truckloads a year processed by TransCore’s DAT Network. The TFI index value for October was 561, compared with 574 in September. October’s figure is still the second highest index value this year, and an 8.3 percent increase from August and 16.2 percent increase over July.

The index, which uses August 1996 as its base, hit its low point this year in February, at 239. Its highest point in the past four years was June 2006, when it hit 1215.

Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com.