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US imports rebounded to a record high in 2024 amid widespread frontloading, while exports expanded slightly for the second straight year.

Apparel importers are concerned that tariffs on China will do harm given more than 4 out of every 10 shipments of the product come from China.

The top 15 liners in the Journal of Commerce rankings collectively carried 18.8 million TEUs to the US from Asia last year, up 17.3% from 2023.

Three Mexican ports rose in the Journal of Commerce’s 2023 rankings, with the moves driven by volume growth coming from Asia inputs amid a nearshoring push in the US.

The Journal of Commerce’s annual Top 100 Importers and Exporters rankings show that the largest shippers in 2023 took a larger share of the inbound and outbound markets in a weak year for overall volumes.

The nearly 1.7 million square feet of cross-dock capacity that has come online over the past two years is a mark of volume growth and the deepening of supply chains through Norfolk’s terminals, writes Journal of Commerce Executive Editor Mark Szakonyi.

A rise in US imports is fueling optimism, especially among ocean carriers, but manufacturing’s malaise is tempering hopes for a broader transportation recovery.

The largest truckload carriers increased revenue 40% from 2020 through 2022, but their rocket ran out of fuel last year amid tumbling spot market prices, lower contract rates and falling fuel surcharges.

A 6% reduction in overall freight helped depress LTL revenue in 2023, the top 40 carrier rankings show, despite a gain in shipments many carriers enjoyed after Yellow’s collapse.

The partnership takes advantage of growing demand that is encouraging more cross-border LTL shipping between the US and Mexico.

The cost of moving flatbed loads from Baltimore to warehouses in western Maryland jumped more than $100 per load compared with February’s average cost, according to data from DAT Freight & Analytics.

The bankrupt LTL provider failed to exhaust grievance procedures in its own contract as it battled the Teamsters over restructuring plans, a US District Court ruled.

The top end of the global 3PL sector is populated by companies that see a down market as a chance to focus on higher-yield customers and those that see a chance to build market share.

The freight hauled by the largest LTL trucking company in the US will become more global under a reorganization of FedEx’s varied domestic and international networks.

The digital freight marketplace is making new software tools that target fake brokers and fraudulent pickups available to customers as well as competitors.

The Chicago-based third-party logistics provider said demand from US shippers is drawing it and its competitors deeper into the cross-border freight market.

The second-largest US less-than-truckload provider is building terminals, parking lots and freight density as competitors vie for real estate and customers.

The Cass Freight Index saw a 7.3% increase in shipment volumes in February from January amid warmer-than-normal weather and as the US manufacturing and services sectors expanded.

Montreal-based TFI gains capacity and capabilities on both the northern and southern US borders by acquiring Hercules, a less-than-truckload provider specializing in cross-border freight.

The South Carolina-based company has nearly doubled the number of doors at a Kentucky service center, the latest in a series of expansions planned in the US LTL sector.

Changing shipping requirements and competitive pressures are reshaping US less-than-truckload networks and LTL terminals themselves at an unprecedented rate.  

The US LTL producer price index rose 2.6% in January from December, while the equivalent truckload measure fell 2.6%, underscoring differences between the sectors.

A new 228,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution facility near Laredo’s World Trade Bridge will help Ryder scale operations for cross-border shippers.

Many US truckload customers engaged in annual bids and contract talks are still looking for rate cuts, but the potential for a market turnaround is tempering behavior.

More accretive “tuck-in” deals that expand carrier niche services and coverage appear likely if the Fed cuts US interest rates and freight demand improves. 

The Journal of Commerce Truckload Capacity Index fell to 2018 levels at the end of 2023 as truckload carriers kept cutting into their fleets to lower costs. 

After the latest round of bidding, the largest US truckload operator has now acquired 25 Yellow facilities, bringing it closer to having a nationwide LTL network. 

Yield and rates are rising at some of the biggest LTL carriers after a strong finish to 2023, although lower fuel surcharges may pull gains down to mid-single digits.

Some of the largest truckload carriers, including Werner, Schneider and J.B. Hunt, are putting more emphasis on dedicated fleets as shippers seek stability and security.

Forward’s chief legal officer will take over as interim CEO as Tom Schmitt exits following a contentious legal battle with Omni Logistics.

The largest US freight broker is trying to eliminate the wait at the gate by not only scheduling truck appointments for shippers, but finding optimal appointment times. 

The US Treasury Department is the first major creditor to be repaid by the bankrupt LTL provider, which received the controversial loan early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Truckload spot rates are creeping higher, but trucking executives see no catalyst for stronger price increases absent higher freight demand, even as capacity slowly tightens. 

The Austria-based global logistics provider looks to increase its US presence, adding less-than-containerload services by acquiring a Utah-based forwarder.

The second-largest US less-than-truckload carrier plans to increase its terminal capacity alongside freight demand, CEO Marty Freeman told the Journal of Commerce.

The deal gives Ryder a significant jolt in dedicated capacity as well as greater scale with existing and new shipper customers.

The largest US broker and forwarder expects ocean spot rates to subside after the Chinese New Year and for US trucking markets to slowly improve throughout 2024.

Building on recent market openings, the point-to-point, long-haul LTL carrier is launching its largest growth push since a 2021 restructuring.

Trucking companies such as Averitt are seeking more diversified freight and deeper connections to customers through transloading. 

UPS CEO Carol Tomé, who was on UPS’s board of directors at the time of the 2015 Coyote acquisition, acknowledged UPS did not fully appreciate how cyclical truckload and intermodal brokerage was at the time.