Truck Tonnage Index Climbs 0.4% in September

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verall for-hire trucking freight volumes rose 0.4% in September from a month earlier, American Trucking Associations said Friday.

The seasonally adjusted rise to a 113.9 index level from 113.5 in August followed three consecutive declines, ATA said.

The September index level was 1.1% higher than a year earlier, the best year-over-year increase since May, the group reported.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, the tonnage index fell 4.2% from August, to 117.9. Year-to-date, the index has risen 2.1% over the same period last year.

The third-quarter tonnage index slipped 0.8% from the second quarter but rose 0.8% compared with the third quarter of 2004, said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello.

He said that freight carriers have been reporting solid freight levels in both September and October, and that that the September gain was helped by a 0.1% rise in manufacturing shipments and a 0.2% increase in retail sales.