November truck tonnage is down, reports ATA
November truck tonnage volumes saw a mild decline, according to data issued by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) this week.
The ATA’s advanced Seasonally Adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index, for November, at 113.7 (2015=100), was off 1%, following an 0.8% October gain, which came in at 114.9.
On an annual basis, the November SA reading decreased 1.2%, marking the ninth straight annual monthly decrease, following October’s 2.4% decrease.
The ATA’s not seasonally-adjusted (NSA) index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by fleets before any seasonal adjustment and the metric ATA says fleets should benchmark their levels with, was 113.2 (2015=100) in November, trailing October’s 119.3 reading by 5.1%.
“We continued to see a choppy 2023 for truck tonnage into November,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello in a statement. “It seems like every time freight improves, it takes a step back the following month. While year-over-year comparisons are improving, unfortunately, the freight market remains in a recession. Looking ahead, with retail inventories falling, we should see less of a headwind for retail freight, but I’m also not expecting a surge in freight levels in the coming months.”
