The highlights from Friday’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.
Market Watch for Sept. 30:
Savannah, Georgia
Hurricane Ian skipped over Savannah and made its second landfall Friday afternoon just north of Charleston, South Carolina.
The Georgia Port Authority released its hours of operation for the day and it is business as usual.
Import manifest intelligence shows Savannah cleared 252,651 twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEUs) from Sept. 1-29, compared to last year when it brought in 232,223 TEUs in the same time frame — an 8.8% increase year over year.
Outbound truckload volumes in Savannah are down in recent days out of caution for the hurricane but reached a six-month high earlier this week. Even though there is an increasing amount of freight coming in through the port, rejection rates are staying relatively low.
The Outbound Tender Reject Index didn’t even reach 5% in September, indicating that the capacity in Savannah is still able to handle the increased imported volume flow.
Milwaukee
Outbound dry van volumes in Milwaukee are trending down this week after reaching a three-month high.
Since Monday, the Outbound Tender Volume Index is down more than 18 points, or 8.5%, and most of this decrease can be attributed to a drop in dry van demand.
The Van Outbound Tender Volume Index has decreased more than nine points, or 6.8%, since Monday. Meanwhile, reefer volumes are down only 3%.
The decline in overall outbound volume from Milwaukee is causing carriers to search the spot market for better rates and opportunities. The Outbound Tender Reject Index is up 186 basis points (bps) since Sept. 22 to 6.1% — its highest level in two months.
Denver
Freight volumes leaving Denver are down to a two-year low leading into October.
The Outbound Tender Volume Index for Denver took a steep dive in the last week to its lowest value since April 2020. However, the index rebounded overnight, rising 4.8%.
On the flipside, inbound volumes are trending down in the past week as well. The Inbound Tender Volume Index slumped 11 points, or 6.5%.
A decrease in outbound volume plunged rejection rates down 650 bps as carriers are accepting freight to get out of the market. But the slight uptick in outbound volume on Friday has provided some signs of optimism to close out the week. The Outbound Tender Reject Index is up 180 bps to 7.1% since yesterday.
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.
Lane to watch: Dallas to Denver
Spot market rates from Dallas to Denver finally found a floor at $2.90 a mile after falling 33 cents in September.
Rates to Denver are currently 22 cents above the national average for spot rates, but a return trip is not so favorable, dropping to $1.59 a mile. However, rejection rates out of Denver are ticking up and putting upward pressure on spot rates. Since Monday, spot rates are up 5 cents and will likely keep rising hand in hand with rejection rates.
