Truck Tonnage Rises 4.3% in April
Truck tonnage rose 4.3% in April from the same month last year, the largest year-over-year gain since January, American Trucking Associations said.
The April index had a reading of 123.2, ATA said in its monthly seasonally adjusted for-hire truck tonnage report. ATA uses the year 2000 as a 100-reading baseline.
The increase follows March’s 3.8% year-over-year gain. Month-to-month April tonnage fell 0.2% after a 0.9% decrease in March.
The not seasonally adjusted index — which represents tonnage actually hauled by fleets — rose 0.5% in April from the previous month to a reading of 125.9.
Year-to-date tonnage increased 4% compared with the same period last year.
“After rising significantly late last year and in January of this year, truck tonnage has been bouncing around a narrow but elevated band over the last three months,” ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said.
“It is also worth noting that the year-over-year comparisons are much better than expected just a few months ago and, I’m hearing good comments about freight so far in May,” he said.
ATA calculates the tonnage each month based on reports by its member trucking companies.
