DOT’s Transportation Services Index Declines for June

he U.S. Transportation Department’s transportation services index fell 0.4% in June from May and the freight index also declined, DOT said Tuesday.

The June reading was just the second drop this year and followed three straight increases, DOT said.

The freight index fell 0.5% from May, following a 1.9% gain. It also was down 0.5% from a year ago.

or the first half of 2006, the TSI rose 0.5%, the third consecutive December-to-June rise but the smallest rise in the six-month period since a decline in 2003.

TSI is a seasonally adjusted monthly index measuring the output of services provided by the for-hire transportation industries, including railroad, air, truck, inland waterways, pipeline and local transit.

It includes data dating back to 1990, with changes measured against the base year of 1996. DOT said the index is still under development and is considered experimental.