Truck Tonnage Continues Gains, Rising 7.4% in July
Truck tonnage continued its string of year-over-year gains, rising 7.4% in July from last year, the eighth straight increase, American Trucking Associations said Wednesday.
Year-to-date tonnage is 6.7% higher than the same period last year, ATA said in its monthly seasonally adjusted for-hire truck tonnage index.
Tonnage had risen 7.6% in June from a year earlier, and July’s level rose 1.5% from June, although June’s downturn from May was revised to 1.6% from an originally reported 1.4% decline, ATA said.
The seasonally adjusted index for July posted a reading of 110, with the year 2000 representing a baseline reading of 100.
The not seasonally adjusted index — representing the change in tonnage actually hauled by fleets before seasonal adjustments — was 109.9 in July, down 5% from June.
ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said that the data did not change outlook for subdued tonnage growth in the months ahead.
“The economy is slowing and truck freight tonnage has essentially gone sideways since April,” he said in a statement, but added that tonnage will post moderate gains on average for the second half of this year.
“After accounting for the reduction in supply over the last few years, even small gains in tonnage will have a larger impact on the industry than in [the] past,” Costello said.
ATA calculates the tonnage each month based on reports by its member trucking companies.
