Trucking rates are expected to peak this fall before conditions decline as the industry absorbs the impact of the hours-of-service rule change, according to FTR’s Trucking Conditions Index.
The index increased a full point in August to 9.52, FTR reported.
"Prior to the government shutdown on Oct. 1, economic and industry data was pointing to a possible uptick in demand as we head into the final stretch of 2013. The length of the shutdown and the outcome of the debt ceiling fight will play a big part in deciding if that acceleration is realized, “Jonathan Starks, FTR’s director of transportation analysis, said in a statement.
TCI is designed to summarize a collection of industry metrics, with a reading above 10 signaling that volumes, prices and margins are likely to be in a solidly favorable range for trucking companies.
“While the shutdown is a tough pill to swallow in a slow-growth economy, the effects of not raising the debt ceiling would be much more dramatic and devastating. We are hopeful that a compromise solution can be crafted before that occurs,” Starks said.
