LTL

US less-than-truckload pricing is moderating as waves of disruption caused by Yellow’s bankruptcy recede, fuel prices fall and demand remains soft. 

Large LTL carriers were the biggest winners from Yellow’s shutdown, but smaller regional carriers are making significant volume gains as well, according to SJ Consulting Group.

With more than 160 facilities still on the auction block, a sizable amount of less-than-truckload capacity once provided by Yellow is up for grabs as the trucking market slows in early 2024.

Larger trucking employers may be reluctant to lay off workers ahead of what they hope will be an uptick in freight demand this coming spring or summer. 

Six large US LTL carriers, led by Saia and Estes, acquired a small portion of Yellow’s remaining facilities at auction this week, keeping the lion’s share of properties sold to date out of the hands of developers.

While the largest US trucking company increased its daily volume 4.6% this fall following Yellow’s summertime collapse, year-over-year comparisons reveal a soft market. 

Large LTL carriers are snapping up shuttered properties once owned by the bankrupt company, but US LTL capacity overall may shrink in 2024, industry experts warn.

An attempt to buy and revive some version of Yellow was called “not viable” after a terminal auction raised $1.9 billion from 22 bidders.

Suspending the auction of its remaining leased properties may give defunct LTL provider Yellow time to work out difficulties with landlords over the leases of potentially valuable properties.

The second-largest US LTL provider saw daily shipments increase less than 1% year over year in November, signaling continued softness in underlying LTL demand as the post-Yellow market settles.

XPO, Estes, Saia and R+L collectively put up more than 80% of the $1.9 billion bid for terminals of bankrupt LTL provider Yellow, while more sites, including some major facilities, have yet to be auctioned. 

The expansion of the three companies, all representing different modes across the US-Canadian border, underscores the depth of the relationship between the two economies.

An auction of Yellow’s 174 owned terminals is scheduled for Tuesday, with winning bids to be disclosed on Friday while a separate battle continues over 149 leased terminals.

With its systems restored, the LTL carrier plans to “lean into” technology development and investment for greater security and visibility.

Large LTL trucking providers are raising tariff rates 5% to 8% on average, but the LTL PPI slowed its growth to under 1% in October.

The expedited less-than-truckload provider has asked a Delaware court to let it kill the controversial deal that has caused its share price to plummet and raised the ire of activist investors.

Jack Cooper Transport wants to outbid other truckers for the assets of the bankrupt less-than-truckload provider, but it’s not clear how the bid would work.

Freight forwarder Omni isn’t giving up on a merger with Forward and is moving to force completion of the deal despite Forward’s cold feet. 

With hundreds of terminals on the market, LTL trucking companies are setting their sights on Yellow’s sites and other properties as they expand and optimize networks to handle more freight.

The apparent change of heart from Forward management comes as Forward activist investors opposed to the $150 million deal try to oust the company’s chief executive.

Less-than-truckload freight once hauled by Yellow is being “reallocated” among carriers, and rates are rising, but an underlying economic impetus for a surge in LTL demand is still missing.

Ancora Alternatives is seeking a special shareholder meeting to replace members of Forward’s board of directors, including CEO Tom Schmitt, with the ultimate goal of killing the acquisition of Omni, which Ancora blames for a steep drop in Forward’s stock value. 

Motor carriers may be concerned that in what is still a tight job market, any employees who are let go temporarily would not be available when demand rises again.

The fourth-largest US less-than-truckload carrier said it had restored many of its core systems by Sunday, while continuing to pick up and deliver freight despite a week of disruption.

Brokered LTL freight may be the first freight diverted away from Estes, and it may be harder for those transactional shipments to find alternate carriers.

A systems outage that has left less-than-truckload carrier Estes grappling with email, website and data exchange issues is the latest such incident to befall the logistics and transportation industry.

Cross-border trade with Mexico is one of the few hot spots in trucking, but fuel prices and other costs are putting more pressure on rates.

Rising labor costs — both behind the wheel and at the warehouse, elevated diesel prices and cross-dock scarcity in major cities are making it more costly to run transportation networks, attendees at the Journal of Commerce’s Inland Distribution Conference were told.

Less-than-truckload freight once hauled by Yellow is being redistributed among other carriers in waves as shippers shop for the best fit in price, capacity, technology and service.

A US bankruptcy court approved a $1.525 billion bid by Estes Express Lines to be the “stalking horse” that sets the floor price for Yellow’s terminals at auction, controlling their sale in November.

Estes Forwarding Worldwide, a subsidiary of the LTL trucking provider, is buying Superior Brokerage Services, a step that increases Estes’ ability to offer end-to-end logistics services as other providers look to do the same.

While the country’s second-largest LTL provider gained shipments in August after the demise of Yellow, it sees no signs that overall freight demand is improving.

Saia and XPO are the latest LTL carriers to report volume gains in August, a month when trucking employment dropped more than 2% following Yellow’s shutdown.

Regional LTL carrier A. Duie Pyle and point-to-point trucking firm Hercules Freight are finding opportunities to expand as shippers adjust to the loss of Yellow’s capacity.

ArcBest less-than-truckload (LTL) subsidiary ABF Freight is taking on additional volume and raising rates as a broad realignment of the US LTL sector gains speed.

Control of Yellow’s real estate may determine who gets to expand in the less-than-truckload (LTL) sector, and who must scramble to find property.

Some logistics managers report longer transit times and delivery delays, as well as higher costs, as remaining LTL providers divide the freight once hauled by Yellow. 

A ‘stalking horse bid’ from Estes, a rival trucking company, would set a floor for any competing bids for the more than 160 properties owned by Yellow.

More than 60 buyers are said to be scrutinizing the terminals and assets of defunct LTL carrier Yellow as freight volumes rise at its former US trucking competitors.

Omni’s international and US forwarding customers are expected to send more freight to Forward Air’s expedited less-than-truckload network in the US.