Truck tonnage remains on an uneven path in May, reports ATA

After a minor April increase, May truck tonnage remained largely uneven, according to data issued by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) today.

The May reading of the ATA’s advanced Seasonally Adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index came in at 113.8 (2015=100), down 0.1% compared to April, which was up 0.5% over March (this was upwardly revised from a 0.3% decrease), and was down 1.3% annually. Year-to-date through May, ATA said that SA tonnage was up 0.1%.

The ATA’s not seasonally adjusted (SA) For-Hire Truck Tonnage 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 116.2 in May, topping April’s 112.0.

“The seesaw freight demand pattern continued in April, making it difficult to discern any clear pattern in the market,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “Excluding the services economy—the largest part of economic activity— the goods market is all over the map, thus impacting freight levels. Construction is soft, manufacturing is up and down, and consumers are cautious.”