Arlington, Va. — Ǻ’ advanced seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index jumped 6.3% in October to 119.9 from September’s mark of 112.8.
“After slowing at the end of the third quarter, truck freight surged in October,” said Ǻ Chief Economist Bob Costello. “Last month’s strength was due, at least in part, to strong import numbers, especially on the West Coast. This is likely a pull ahead of imports as shippers try to take delivery of goods before January 1 when tariffs on a large list of goods China increases from 10% to 25%.”
September’s change over the previous month was revised up to +0.1% (-0.8% was originally reported in our press release on October 23).
Compared with October 2017, the SA index increased 9.5%, up from September’s 3.8% year-over-year increase. Year-to-date, compared with the same period last year, tonnage increased 7.3%.
The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 124.4 in October, which was 11.8% above the previous month (111.2). In calculating the index, 100 represents 2015.
Trucking serves as a barometer of the U.S. economy, representing 70.2% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods. Trucks hauled 10.77 billion tons of freight in 2017. Motor carriers collected $700.1 billion, or 79.3% of total revenue earned by all transport modes.
Ǻ calculates the tonnage index based on surveys from its membership and has been doing so since the 1970s. This is a preliminary figure and subject to change in the final report issued around the 10th day of the month. The report includes month-to-month and year-over-year results, relevant economic comparisons and key financial indicators.