Truck Tonnage Dips in April

Truck tonnage dipped slightly in April after March numbers exceeded predictions and American Trucking Associations’ revised its March reading from a drop to an increase.

ATA’s advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index decreased 0.3% in April after increasing 2.3% in March. The increase was a revision from a previously reported drop of 5.1%.

 In April, the index equaled 114.7 (2015=100) compared with 115.1 in March.

“After a revised increase in March of 2.3%, the April index declined just slightly,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello in a press release. “The outlook is solid for tonnage going forward as the country approaches pre-pandemic levels of activity, with strong economic growth in key areas for trucking – including retail, home construction and even manufacturing.

The index increased on a year-over-year basis for the first time since March 2020.

“Part of the reason for the gain was due to an easy comparison with when the index fell significantly in April 2020,” he said. “But I’m expecting increases, albeit smaller than April’s, on a year-over-year basis going forward. Trucking’s biggest challenges are not on the demand side, but on the supply side, including difficulty finding qualified drivers.”

Compared with April 2020, the SA index jumped 6.9%, which was preceded by a 2.4% year-over-year decline in March.

The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 114.3 in April, 4.2% below the March level (119.3). In calculating the index, 100 represents 2015. ATA’s For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index is dominated by contract freight as opposed to spot market freight.

ATA calculates the tonnage index based on surveys from its membership and has been doing so since the 1970s.