If you’re a carrier, the numbers below clearly show that it’s good to be you. If you’re a shipper, not so much, because until further notice, they provide a good indication of why you can expect it to be a carriers’ market and to pay more for your transportation for a long time to come.
Number of U.S. brick-and-mortar stores that either closed in 2020 or are expected to close in 2021
Reported growth of U.S. eCommerce orders in 2020 according to Digital 360 magazine
Anticipated industry-wide LTL rate increases through 2021
Average amount per dry van truckload mile that shippers spent more for in fourth quarter 2020 than they did during the same time period in 2019.
Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index/PMI at the end of December 2020 – a 3.2% increase over November 2020 and the seventh straight month this index has grown. (FYI, anything over 50 usually indicates a future uptick in LTL freight volumes.)
