BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — DAT One load posts totaled 2.58 million for the week of Oct. 17-23, down 2% from the prior week.
“Total equipment posts rose 1% to 185,243,” DAT Freight & Analytics said. “Spot linehaul rates slipped 2 cents per mile across all three equipment types, and national average broker-to-carrier spot rates fell 2 to 3 cents. Fuel surcharge amounts were nearly unchanged week over week, so almost all of the decline in spot truckload pricing came from the linehaul portion.”
7-Day Average Broker-to-Carrier Spot Rates (Linehaul + Fuel Surcharge)
â–¼ Van: $3.07 per mile, down 2 cents
â–¼ Reefer: $3.63 per mile, down 3 cents
â–¼ Flatbed: $3.61 per mile, down 3 cents
“Trucks remain scarce year over year,” said Dean Croke, industry analyst, DAT. “Linehaul rates slipped as load posts declined faster than truck posts, easing the load-to-truck ratio. Truck posts on DAT One remain 20% to 26% below a year ago, keeping linehaul rates 33% above last year for van, 31% for reefer, and 28% for flatbed. All three are 23% to 29% above their nine-year seasonal averages for late October. The 35-day DAT iQ RateCast forecast has van linehaul holding near $2.24 a mile through late November, reefer edging up to $2.78, and flatbed easing to $2.59.”
Dry Van: Load Posts Cooled as Trucks Held Steady
â–¼ Loads: 1,183,670, down 2%
— Trucks: 124,434, essentially flat
â–¼ Linehaul rate: $2.24 per mile, down 2 cents
â–¼ Load-to-truck ratio: 9.5, down from 9.7 the prior week
Reefer: The Steepest Drop in Load Posts
â–¼ Loads: 536,059, down 5%
â–² Trucks: 36,253, up 2%
â–¼ Linehaul rate: $2.73 per mile, down 2 cents
â–¼ Load-to-truck ratio: 14.8, down from 15.8 the prior week
“Reefer demand turned lower,” Croke said. “Reefer load posts fell 5% last week and are now 4% below a year ago, reversing the prior week’s 12% gain. Reefer truck posts rose 2%. None of DAT’s top 10 reefer origin regions posted a rate gain. The Lower Midwest fell the most, down 17 cents to $3.16 a mile, followed by the Upper Atlantic, down 9 cents to $2.72. Reefer linehaul still runs 65 cents a mile above a year ago, again the largest year-over-year gain in cents among the three equipment types. On the produce side, USDA data showed national refrigerated volume up 7% on the week, led by South Texas crossings and the Imperial and Coachella harvest.”
Flatbed: More Trucks Eased a Tight Board
â–¼ Loads: 857,777, down 1%
â–² Trucks: 24,556, up 3%
â–¼ Linehaul rate: $2.63 per mile, down 2 cents
â–¼ Load-to-truck ratio: 34.9, down from 36.5 the prior week
Impact of Diesel Prices
According to Croke, diesel prices climbed again. At Pilot Flying J locations, diesel averaged $6.47 a gallon on Oct. 24, up 13 cents (2%) from Oct. 17. That is $2.17 (51%) above the pre-war baseline of $4.30 from late February and early March. A long-haul truck running 500 miles a day at 6 mpg burns about 83 gallons, so its daily diesel bill has risen from $358 before the war to $539 today, an increase of $181 a day. For a DAT spot dry van carrier, diesel now costs about 92 cents a mile, or 43% of operating costs, compared with 59 cents, or 32%, before the war. Pump prices ranged from $8.50 a gallon in Palmdale, Calif., to $5.40 in Albany and Dalton, Georgia and McLeansville, N.C.
What to Watch this Week
- Fuel: This report’s fuel surcharge uses the EIA’s $6.179-a-gallon national average for the week of Oct. 12, down 2 cents. The EIA reported $6.276 for the week of Oct. 19, up 9.7 cents and its first increase in four weeks. That figure will feed next week’s surcharge and add about 2 cents a mile for all three equipment types.
- Economic reports: The Conference Board’s October consumer confidence index comes out Tuesday. The Federal Reserve announces its interest rate decision Wednesday, Oct. 28, after a two-day meeting. The first estimate of third-quarter GDP and weekly jobless claims come out Thursday, Oct. 29.
- Taxes and compliance: Third-quarter IFTA fuel tax returns are due Monday, Nov. 2, because Oct. 31 falls on a Saturday. Unified Carrier Registration for 2027 is open and due by Dec. 31.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe.
