BEAVERTON, Ore. — The weather heated up the spot truckload freight market during the latest week, with DAT One reporting load posts up 40%.
“A combination of heavy snow, ice accumulation, and dangerous cold made roads treacherous during Winter Storm Fern and for days after, causing widespread paralysis of supply chains and boosting demand for available trucks,” DAT said. “The total number of loads posted to the DAT One load board topped 3.6 million, a 40% increase from the previous week, and truck posts dropped 18% to 200,769—almost exactly what we’d expect from a storm of Fern’s magnitude. National average spot rates were higher across all three equipment types.”
Broker-to-Carrier 7-Day Average Spot Rates
â–² Dry van: $2.38 per mile, up 11 cents week over week
â–² Refrigerated: $2.85 per mile, up 15 cents
â–² Flatbed: $2.53 per mile, up 1 cent
Dry Van
â–² Van loads: 1.65 million, up 55% week over week
â–¼ Van equipment: 142,817, down 19% week over week
â–² Linehaul rate: $2.01 per mile, up 11 cents week over week
“Last week’s 11-cent increase in the national average spot dry van rate was the largest week-over-week increase in more than three years,” said Dean Croke, industry analyst, DAT Freight & Analytics. “That’s nearly 30 cents higher year-over-year and exceeds the five-year average by 36 cents, excluding the 2020 and 2021 pandemic years.”
Reefer
â–² Reefer loads: 1 million, up 71% week over week
â–¼ Reefer equipment: 36,670, down 10% week over week
â–² Linehaul rate: $2.49 per mile, up 15 cents week over week
“The relative scarcity of available trucks was exacerbated in the refrigerated market as shippers competed for insulated trailers to protect dry van freight from freezing,” Croke said. “The freeze-risk pricing premium sent spot reefer rates soaring last week.”
Flatbed
â–² Flatbed loads: 1 million, up 5% week over week
â–¼ Flatbed equipment: 21,282, down 18% week over week
â–² Linehaul rate: $2.16 per mile, up 1 cent week over week
“At $2.16 per mile, the national average spot flatbed rate increased by 1 cent last week, a modest boost compared to the van and reefer markets,” Croke said. “The rate is 19 cents higher year over year, however, and exceeds the five-year average (excluding 2020 and 2021) by 25 cents.”
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
