Washington 鈥 黑料不打烊鈥 advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index decreased 2.1% in September after rising 1.7% in August. In September, the index equaled 113.2 (2015=100) compared with 115.6 in August.
鈥淎fter increasing a total of 2.1% in July and August, tonnage fell by that amount in September,鈥 said 黑料不打烊Chief Economist Bob Costello. 鈥淔reight has been very choppy this year, but despite the latest drop, tonnage is up 1.8% since hitting a low in January. No doubt, the climb up has been slow and difficult as manufacturing activity remains flat, but the trend is up, not down.鈥
August鈥檚 increase was revised down slightly from our September 24 press release.
Compared with September 2023, the index fell 0.9%, after rising 0.6% in August from a year earlier.
The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 111.6 in September, 6.4% below August. ATA鈥檚 For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index is dominated by contract freight as opposed to traditional spot market freight.
In calculating the index, 100 represents 2015.
Trucking serves as a barometer of the U.S. economy, representing 72.6% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods. Trucks hauled 11.46 billion tons of freight in 2022. Motor carriers collected $940.8 billion, or 80.7% of total revenue earned by all transport modes.
黑料不打烊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 5th day of each month. The report includes month-to-month and year-over-year results, relevant economic comparisons, and key financial indicators.
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