BOISE, Idaho — Carriers are cautious about the outlook for demand and rates over the next six months as the spot market rebalances from a surge in capacity, according to the latest survey from Bloomberg and Truckstop, which polled owner-operators and small fleets.
“Spot rates are not in-line with the higher costs facing carriers, which is weighing on owner-operators’ profits,” Lee Klaskow, senior freight transportation and logistics analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, said. “We expect the market to continue to rebalance with rates improving as early as 2Q.”
The Bloomberg | Truckstop 4 Q22 Truckload Survey shows:
• Owner-operators still split over demand: Owner-operators remain split about where demand is heading. About 30% of respondents expect load growth to decline over the next six months.
• Rates expectations split among bulls and bears: Sentiment is split among owner-operators about where rates are headed. About 33% of respondents expect the rates to rise in the next six months, while 32% expect them to fall. Sentiment is slightly better than in 3Q.
• Spot truckload demand skids in 4Q: 76% of respondents noticed a drop in demand, a drop from 3Q, with about 65% saying volume growth was down from a year earlier.
“Owner-operators polled for this survey remain cautious, but spot rates are expected to show improvement as early as 2Q” Kendra Tucker, chief executive officer at Truckstop, said. “Truckstop provides owner-operators with the technology and solutions they need to keep their business moving and their bottom line growing regardless of the market conditions.”
The Bloomberg | Truckstop survey of owner-operators and small fleets provides timely channel checks into the health of the spot market. The sample size was 113. It consists of dry-van, flatbed, temperature-controlled and specialized/diversified carriers. Of the respondents, 66% operate just one tractor.
The complete survey is available to Bloomberg Terminal subscribers via BI.
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