March trucking tonnage trends down, reports ATA

Truck tonnage took a step path in March, continuing an uneven pattern to begin 2024, according to data issued this week by the American Trucking Associations (ATA).

The ATA’s advanced Seasonally Adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index fell 2%, to 113.4 (2015=100), following a 4% February gain, to 115.7, and a 3.2% January decline. On an annual basis, the March SA was off 1%, marking the 13^th consecutive annual decline, albeit the second smallest over that duration, with February down 1.7%.

The ATA’s not seasonally-adjusted (NSA) index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by fleets before any seasonal adjustment and the metric ATA says fleets should benchmark their levels with, came in at 114.4, topping February by 7.4%. And it added that this index is dominated by contract freight rather than spot market freight.

“Tonnage in March suggests that truck freight volumes remain lackluster, and it is clear the truck freight recession continued through the first quarter,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello in a statement. “In the first three months of 2024, ATA’s tonnage index contracted 0.8% from the previous quarter and declined 2.4% from a year earlier, highlighting ongoing challenges the industry is navigating.”