The highlights from Thursday’s SONAR reports are below. For more information on SONAR — the fastest freight-forecasting platform in the industry — or to request a demo, click here. Also, be sure to check out the latest SONAR update, TRAC — the freshest spot rate data in the industry.
NTI as a point of reference
The National Truckload Index is a daily look at how spot rates in specific lanes hold up in comparison to the national average, giving carriers and brokers an idea of which lanes to gravitate toward or avoid.
Thursday’s National Truckload Index Daily: $2.89
Chicago to Allentown, Pennsylvania: $3.25 a mile – 732 miles
- After falling $1.49 since the beginning of March, spot market rates for Chicago to Allentown have begun to plateau at $3.25 a mile — 36 cents above the national average.
- The Outbound Tender Volume Index for Chicago has slowly declined following Memorial Day but has been relatively stable over the past couple of weeks. Tender rejection rates are trending lower, currently at 6.3%, which will likely lead to downward pressure on spot rates moving forward.
- Though outbound tender volumes for Allentown have decreased 1.1% week-over-week (w/w), indicating some softening, volumes are up 8% overall in the last month from a surge in volume after Memorial Day. Rejections are currently at 8.4% with a downward trajectory. Presented a chance to book a load coming out, carriers should move quickly before rejections can drop further.
Atlanta to Dallas: $2.58 a mile – 787 miles
- Spot market rates in this lane haven’t reached above $2.75 all year except for a brief few days in mid-April, but they have been able to remain above $2.50. Currently at $2.58, 31 cents lower than the national average, Dallas is still an attractive market for carriers in the current environment.
- The Outbound Tender Volume Index for Atlanta has trended sideways over the past three weeks, but rejection rates sliding indicate that spot rates may be moving lower in the coming weeks. With a confidence score of 4, there is still a significant amount of volume moving from Atlanta to Dallas at a higher rate than in early May.
- At the other end of the lane, Dallas has seen a 2% increase in volume in the last month with rejections at 6.4%. Conditions have definitely eased in Dallas, but the availability to get a load on the way out is still strong compared to surrounding markets.
Watch: Carrier update
Market blowup
In this section, markets that are having a surge of volume or a “blowup” will be analyzed and brought to the attention of any carriers that are seeking to depart from their current market.
If this pertains to you, be on the lookout for anything going to El Paso, Texas, because it just became a lot hotter in more ways than a 100 degree heat index. El Paso has seen a 25% jump in outbound tender volume in the last three months and a 20% increase w/w, thus causing rejections to soar up to 28.6%.
Carriers should take whatever rates they can get into this market to take a slice out of this pecan pie (the state pie of Texas) before things begin to cool down and there is another market to move on to.
