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Trucking News

The Journal of Commerce’s trucking news and analysis encompasses full truckload, less-than-truckload (LTL), private fleet trucking, refrigerated trucking, regulation, drayage, and transloading. Reporting centers on pricing, volume demand, capacity, labor, regulation, and service levels in US and Canadian trucking networks. 

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The latest Trucking News News & Analysis

Knight-Swift to buy truckload carrier U.S. Xpress for $808 million 

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Knight-Swift, the largest US truckload provider, will substantially expand its reach and scalability for shippers with the purchase of U.S. Xpress, the country’s ninth-largest truckload carrier.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

FedEx Freight cuts costs but improves profit as US LTL volumes shrink

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
With ‘every dollar under scrutiny,’ FedEx Freight is squeezing its trucking division, gaining financial improvements that better position the carrier for the next economic rebound. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsLTL

CP-KCS could benefit from rising tide of cross-border freight from Mexico

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The combined railroad has an opportunity to divert more than 64,000 truck shipments to intermodal rail, according to S&P Global, but that’s only the crest of a wave of US imports from Mexico. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsRail NewsInternational railIntermodal providers

Shipwell arms ‘underserved’ smaller shippers with automated bidding tool

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Shippers that often use spreadsheets and small transportation teams to bid and execute freight shipments are the target of a new software tool from technology provider Shipwell.
Logistics Technology NewsTrucking NewsTruckloadLTLTruck brokers

US truckload rates drop sharply in February, but not LTL pricing: PPIs

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Trucking is a tale of two sectors in early 2023, with truckload carriers making more significant contract rate concessions than less-than-truckload companies, according to the US producer price index.
Trucking NewsTruckloadLTL

US trucking, warehousing firms shed jobs, but still have more than a year ago

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Most of the transportation job losses reported for February were due to seasonal cuts rather than economic contraction, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Supply chainSurfaceTrucking NewsLast Mile News

US chassis market nearing ‘equilibrium’ after disruptive shortages

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
Chassis providers believe the equipment shortages that bogged down inland supply chains in 2021 and 2022 will soon no longer be an issue for shippers, allowing the industry to return to a more typical supply/demand balance.
Container Shipping NewsTrucking NewsIntermodal providers

Intermodal share data point to opportunities: analyst

Larry Gross, president and founder, Gross Transportation Consulting; and JOC analyst |
It stands to reason that the more miles one spends on low-cost rail, the better the comparative economics versus truck should be, but that’s not what happens in the real world, writes analyst Larry Gross.
SurfaceTrucking NewsIntermodal providersNorth-American rail

OCEMA appeals chassis ruling to FMC commissioners

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
The Ocean Carrier Equipment Management Association says the FMC’s chief administrative judge erred in issuing a summary judgement against the group because key facts are still in dispute.
Transport, Trade, and Regulation NewsContainer linesNorth American portsTrucking News

Drayage tech provider PortPro targeting shippers with new tracking tools

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Drayage software vendor PortPro is attempting to narrow the gap between the tools that port truckers and their shipper customers use with a new container milestone tracking product it has launched.
Logistics Technology NewsNorth American portsDrayageTrucking News

Shippers committed to digital investments in logistics: S&P Global

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Shippers are showing “healthy adoption” of a wide variety of digital transformation projects, according to new research from S&P Global Market Intelligence.
Logistics Technology NewsContainer Shipping NewsPort NewsTrucking NewsSupply chain

Southern California volume declines cause truck, rail rates to plunge

Ari Ashe, Senior Editor |
Trucking and intermodal providers are offering discounts to secure freight in Southern California, where volumes are declining as imports from Asia fall.
SurfaceTrans-PacificNorth American portsTrucking NewsIntermodal providers

Maersk shifts detention billing to consignees ahead of FMC regulation

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
The move by the carrier comes as the FMC is in the midst of a rulemaking process around detention and demurrage billing mandated by the passage of the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022 last June.
DrayageContainer Shipping NewsContainer linesNorth American portsTrucking NewsTransport, Trade, and Regulation News

Trucker group opposes Biden’s labor secretary pick over AB5 support

Teri Errico Griffis |
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association says Julie Su’s support of AB5 while California’s labor secretary showed a lack of understanding of the owner-operator trucking model.
SurfaceTrucking News

Investors back Overhaul’s hybrid risk management–visibility strategy

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Supply chain risk-focused technology provider Overhaul has channeled demand for reducing exposure to cargo theft into a $38 million funding round just a few weeks after acquiring competitor SensiGuard.
Logistics Technology NewsContainer Shipping NewsTrucking NewsRail News

US startup eyes street turn tech expansion throughout North America

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Technology startup Qualle is trying to overcome drayage industry inertia around matching empty import boxes with export loads outside of ports by using early-stage funding to serve every North American port market.
Logistics Technology NewsPort NewsMarine terminalsNorth American portsDrayageTrucking News

More US shippers finding LTL savings, but no ‘price war’ 

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Several US shippers tell the Journal of Commerce they are getting rate concessions from their less-than-truckload carriers, but the price cuts are far from universal and may depend on how shippers bid.
SurfaceTrucking NewsLTL

Journal of Commerce Rankings: Top 25 truckload carriers saw big revenue gains in 2022

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The last two years were highly profitable for the largest US truckload carriers, but 2023 promises to be a tougher time as rates and volumes decline.
SurfaceTrucking News

US truck tonnage levels better than expected in January

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
An actual decrease in truck tonnage last month was masked by a seasonal adjustment to an American Trucking Associations index, but US freight volumes aren’t yet on the road to recovery.
Trucking NewsTruckloadLTL

Leaf Logistics using technology to create dedicated truckload fleets in key US markets

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Freight coordination software provider Leaf Logistics is working with a number of shippers and truckload carriers to build flexible, dedicated fleets to allow for continuous moves in big US markets.
Logistics Technology NewsTruckload

New data casts doubt on H2 rebound in US freight demand

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Despite better-than-expected factory output in January, the manufacturing spigot that releases shipping demand simply isn’t turning fast enough and retail inventories remain stubbornly high.
SurfaceTrucking NewsRail NewsSupply chain

Cap European rail electricity price hikes or lose out to road: intermodal group

Greg Knowler, Senior Editor Europe |
Long-haul rail freight in Europe, the main alternative to road transport, is being undermined as the cost of electricity far outstrips diesel, say combined transport stakeholders.
Rail NewsTrucking NewsLTLInternational railIntermodal providers

US flatbed trucking activity sees early regional revival: DAT

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Demand for flatbed tractor-trailers is rising along the Gulf Coast and Southeast, buoyed by project cargo, shifting freight patterns, and a warmer-than-normal winter, DAT Freight & Analytics says.
SurfaceProject cargoTrucking NewsFlatbed

Cass sees US freight shifting to truckload as costs drop

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Lower rates and ample capacity are drawing more freight to the US truckload sector, particularly the dedicated and contract markets, according to the Cass Freight Index report.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

US LTL shipments getting smaller: Forward Air

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Shippers are still tendering approximately the same number of shipments, but they’re shipping less freight per shipment, the head of expedited LTL carrier Forward Air says.
SurfaceTrucking NewsLTL

US truckload capacity still abundant despite recent motor carrier exits

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Smaller trucking firms are leaving the market at a faster rate, but plenty of truckload capacity remains, especially at larger fleets that are just short of record truck counts.
SurfaceTrucking NewsTruckload

Zero-carbon fuel crucial in meeting EU truck emissions targets: transport groups

Greg Knowler, Senior Editor Europe |
Meeting the EU road emissions targets will not be achieved by focusing exclusively on electric vehicles, with the combustion engine likely to play a significant role over the next two decades.
Trucking NewsForwardingTruckload

3PL Echo moves to expand LTL business with new executive hires

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Primarily an industrial transportation sector, the LTL business is moving into retail and is also becoming more involved in transloading at US port cities. 
Trucking NewsTruckloadLTLLogistics Technology News

Spot truckload rates rising at US East Coast ports, falling on West Coast

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Analysts have told the Journal of Commerce they expect spot market pricing to bottom out and remain flat for some time before rising again, most likely at a slow pace.
SurfaceDrayageTrucking NewsTruckload

Overhaul acquisition consolidates freight risk management market

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Freight visibility provider Overhaul has acquired a competitor that doubles its size and gives it deeper cargo monitoring capability in Brazil, Mexico, and Central Europe.
Logistics Technology NewsContainer Shipping NewsTrucking NewsAir Cargo

US transport providers lose fewer jobs than expected in January

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Courier, trucking, and warehousing firms lost workers last month, but the seasonal surge and purge was more muted than expected, reflecting broader labor market resilience.
SurfaceTrucking laborIndustrial Real Estate News

US ‘freight recession’ putting motor carrier financing tools to the test

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Smaller US truckload carriers and the companies that provide them with access to working capital are under increasing pressure as cargo demand slows.
Logistics Technology NewsTrucking NewsTruckload

C.H. Robinson reaffirms commitment to global forwarding business

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The largest US logistics provider claims “compelling results” from cross-selling surface transportation and air and ocean services, despite weak market conditions.
Supply chainMaritimeTrucking NewsAir Cargo

US LTL freight volumes starting to improve ahead of spring: ODFL

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Old Dominion Freight Line “has its fingers crossed” that the decline in less-than-truckload volumes is turning and an increase in freight demand will be seen in March or the second quarter.
SurfaceTrucking NewsLTL

UPS to sharpen focus on ‘smart’ technology in ‘bumpy’ 2023

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Technology that connects and automates packages, trucks, and sorting facilities will come to the fore at UPS this year as the largest US logistics provider positions itself for an economic rebound.
SurfaceTrucking NewsAir CargoSupply chain

Pitt Ohio, Daylight to expedite LTL freight from eastern US to West Coast

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
An expedited linehaul service using team drivers will cut transit times connecting Pitt Ohio’s eastern territory with California within three days. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsLTL

US LTL carriers look past downturn by expanding for next rebound

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
The promise of economic improvement in the second half of this year and 2024 has LTL trucking companies adding terminals, doors, and services despite the current slowdown.
SurfaceTrucking NewsLTL

Investors fuel drayage software provider PortPro with $12 million in funding

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
Investors see drayage as an area rife for technological improvement, with software provider PortPro the latest startup to secure funding to empower port truckers.
Logistics Technology NewsPort NewsDrayageTrucking News

FourKites aims to turbocharge shipper analytics efforts

Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor |
The need for shippers to contextualize freight status data led visibility provider FourKites to build a data connectivity tool for enterprise shippers.
Logistics Technology NewsContainer Shipping NewsPort NewsTrucking NewsSupply chain

US spot flatbed capacity rising as housing starts, manufacturing decline

William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor |
Demand for flatbed trucks on DAT Freight & Analytics’ spot load boards is at a seven-year low for January, creating excess capacity that is keeping pressure on rates. 
SurfaceTrucking NewsFlatbed