Freight shipments and expenditures are mixed in June, reports Cass Freight Index

Freight shipments and expenditures readings were mixed in June, according to the new edition of the Cass Freight Index, which was recently issued by Cass Information Systems. 

Many freight transportation and logistics executives and analysts consider the Cass Freight Index to be the most accurate barometer of freight volumes and market conditions, with many analysts noting that the Cass Freight Index sometimes leads the American Trucking Associations (ATA) tonnage index at turning points, which lends to the value of the Cass Freight Index.

What’s more, the Cass Transportation Index accurately measure changes in North American freight activity and costs based on $44 billion in paid freight expenses for the Cass customer base of hundreds of large shippers. 

The June shipments reading, at 1.052, fell 2.4% annually and was off 0.2% sequentially. June shipments dropped 2.9% on a seasonally-adjusted (SA) basis, from May to June, and were down 8.3% on a two-year stacked change basis.

“The trade war is having a variety of effects, with a few waves of pre-tariff inventory building and subsequent drawing down, but volumes were steady from May,” wrote Tim Denoyer, the report’s author and ACT Research vice president and senior analyst, in the report.  “After rising 13% in 2021 and 0.6% in 2022, the index declined 5.5% in 2023 and 4.1% in 2024, and so far, is trending toward another decline in 2025. In July, the shipments component of the Cass Freight Index would decline 5% y/y on the normal seasonal pattern, but could exceed seasonality given the recent rise in imports.” 

June expenditures, at 3.273, increased 2.6% annually and were down 1.2% compared to May. Expenditures decreased 2.8% on a month-to-month SA basis and were down 7.0% on a two-year stacked change basis.  

“The expenditures component of the Cass Freight Index, which measures the total amount spent on freight, fell 1.2% m/m in June,” wrote Denoyer. “The y/y gain improved to 2.6% from 0.8% in May, marking the third straight y/y increase after more than two years of declines.

The y/y increase was more than explained by higher rates, as shipments fell 2.4%. We infer rates rose 5.2% y/y in June, partly due to changing modal mix, as in recent months, with more truckloads and lower LTL mix.”