New to SONAR – LTL pricing by freight class
Long-haul LTL shipments typically have higher rates for Classes 70-85 freight (blue line) than for long-haul LTL shipments for Classes 50-65 freight (red line). (Chart: SONAR)
LTL pricing is far more complex than that of other freight modes and has more to do with the density of the freight being shipped than the distance. According to Zach Strickland, SONAR’s head of freight market intelligence, “revenue per hundredweight [published by public carriers in earnings releases] is the worst way to look at LTL pricing.” That’s because the aggregated carrier metrics fail to account for changes in the mix of freight and the associated impact that has on pricing. As an alternative, Strickland suggests only comparing the rates to move freight via LTL to pallets that are classified within the same class and also have a similar length of haul.
Also new to SONAR – intermodal contract rates by lane
In the past five years, intermodal contract rates rose and fell in three long-haul lanes, LA-Chicago, LA-Dallas and LA-Atlanta. (Chart: SONAR)
On Wednesday, I demoed our new intermodal rate data on the main stage at our F3: Future of Freight Festival in Chattanooga. This much-requested dataset leverages our partnership with Cass Information Systems Inc. I believe it will help shippers that are new to using rail intermodal as well as longtime intermodal shippers that are preparing to put their freight out to bid.
Features of the dataset include:
Door-to-door contractual rates to move 53-foot containers, including fuel but excluding all other accessorial charges.
Coverage of 67 distinct lanes.
Weekly updates of all rates.
Easily compared dry van truckload rates via the Market Dashboard tool to provide intermodal “savings rates” for all 67 lanes.
Two aggregated intermodal rate indexes: a Transcontinental Index that represents an average of five dense LA outbound lanes and a Local East Index that is an average of nine dense corridors in the Eastern third of the country.
Reflecting greater competition with truckload, intermodal rates in Local East lanes (index in red – left axis) are more volatile than those in transcontinental lanes (blue – right axis).
Get caught up on the F3: Future of Freight Festival
The FreightWaves editorial staff is busy summarizing the many fireside chats and demos at F3, which runs through the end of the day Thursday. Here are a few articles about the conference so far:
State of Freight live: A bullish post-election trucking market assessment
J.B. Hunt CEO talks need for industry collaboration
Nikola leader talks future of hydrogen-powered trucks in US
Convoy co-founder reflects on digital brokerage’s rise and fall
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