ATA: Truck Tonnage Slipped in June

American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index decreased 1.6% in June after increasing 3% in May, the organization said.

In June, the index equaled 113.5 (2015=100) compared with 115.3 in May.

May’s increase was revised down from our June 18 press release.

Slow But Steady Positive Trend

Compared with June 2023, the index decreased 0.4%. In May, the index was up 1% from a year earlier, which was the first year-over-year gain since February 2023.

“While giving back some of the gain from May, it appears that truck freight tonnage is slowly going in the right direction since hitting a recent low in January,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “Despite June’s decline, the second quarter average was 0.2% above the first quarter and only 0.2% below the second quarter in 2023, which are good signs that truck freight might be finally turning the corner.”

The not-seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 113.1 in June, 5.5% below May.

ATA’s For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index is dominated by contract freight as opposed to traditional spot market freight.

In calculating the index, 100 represents 2015.

ATA noted that trucking serves as a barometer of the U.S. economy, representing 72.6% of tonnage carried by all modes of domestic freight transportation, including manufactured and retail goods.

Trucks hauled 11.46 billion tons of freight in 2022. Motor carriers collected $940.8 billion, or 80.7% of total revenue earned by all transport modes.

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

This is a preliminary figure and subject to change in the final report issued around the 5th day of each month. The report includes month-to-month and year-over-year results, relevant economic comparisons, and key financial indicators.