Surface

Spot rates soared as the deadline for US tariffs approached this week, and now many shipments are stranded in transit, according to logistics providers.

Kate Farmer told TPM25 that people would be “shocked” at how much money the oft-targeted railroad spends on combating the increasingly sophisticated methods of cargo theft.

The Barstow International Gateway (BIG) could cut transit times on international intermodal business and increase the resiliency of Southern California ports during freight surges, BNSF CEO Kate Farmer said.

Truckload spot shipments and pricing in trade corridors such as Toronto-to-Chicago have soared since the US election, but the increases flow in both directions.

Acquisition activity in the truckload space continues, with price benchmarking vendor Greenscreens.ai the latest to sell.

A drop in consumer confidence, spurred by higher inflation and tariff fears, makes a significant increase in freight demand and truck rates less likely until late in 2025.

Tariff concerns and fears of labor unrest helped grow volumes at key ports along the West Coast last month, with the gains coming at the expense of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic.

Supply chain security technology provider Overhaul forecasts another big year for cargo theft in 2025, although not as big as a 49% year-over-year increase in 2024.

Dayton Freight Lines and A. Duie Pyle are partnering to provide next-day service from the East Coast to all parts of Ohio as shippers demand more speed.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will accept additional comments on a proposed rule that would require brokers to make transactional data available to carriers.

The Journal of Commerce Truckload Capacity Index hit a 10-year low in the fourth quarter, but its rate of decline has slowed considerably as truckload pricing begins to rise from its bottom.

A 5.8% jump in the less-than-truckload producer price index in January accompanied growth in US manufacturing orders and output.

project44 is the latest established software provider to release a suite of artificial intelligence agents amid a torrent of startups building tools for logistics providers and shippers.

The latest Journal of Commerce Intermodal Service Scorecard shows how the performance of North American Class I railroads suffered due to congestion caused by high cargo volumes in Southern California and severe weather in the Southeast.

While trucking companies and intermodal carriers believe contract rates will rise this summer, shippers are skeptical given past predictions that have fallen by the wayside.

But Hackett Associates founder Ben Hackett said US port cargo “could be badly hit” if tariffs on Asian and European countries increase prices and prompt US consumers to buy less.

While tariffs and the trade wars that could result are indeed a serious matter, the direct effects of potential US tariffs on Canada and Mexico on the North American intermodal market would be “relatively minor,” writes Larry Gross.

The ocean carrier is diving into domestic intermodal logistics for shippers sending freight from inland markets to the West Coast.

In terms of raw dollars, intermodal shippers saved an average of $741 per container versus truckload for spot market transactions across the 120 lanes in the Journal of Commerce Intermodal Savings Index, up from $649 one year ago.

GenLogs uses a network of highway sensors to help freight brokers manage freight fraud and also identify sales and capacity opportunities.

A slow shift away from one-way truckload toward dedicated is reshaping the top tier of truckload carriers, a transformation that may accelerate in a freight recovery.

A spokesperson for NS says requiring truckers to have appointments to pick up containers at the Chicago facility allows for “stack grooming,” meaning it gives the railroad information in advance on which boxes to make available.

The largest US freight broker expects the first quarter of 2025 to be weak for trucking as the freight recession remains in place, but it is converting more customers to use its services for ocean freight.

New freight classifications that will take effect this summer could raise costs for less-than-truckload shippers that don’t begin working with carriers now, speakers at the SMC3 conference said.

The planned development in Eastern Canada marks the latest stage in a nearly two-year-old partnership between the company and the Class I railroad.

The effort coincides with UP’s plans to open a new terminal in Kansas City, Kansas, in the third quarter of this year that would alleviate pressure on the railroad’s existing terminal across the border in Missouri.

Speakers at SMC3’s Jump Start 25 conference see advance signals of better demand growth for freight in 2025, but the pace and extent of that growth are still uncertain.

The former Wisconsin congressman and Fox Business host was confirmed by a 77-22 vote on Tuesday.

Changes in supply chains, rising manufacturing demand and even the collapse of Yellow have more LTL trucking firms looking for business on the US-Mexico border.

A “pivot” from LTL acquisitions and terminal openings may signal greater belt-tightening by trucking companies in a continuing soft market.

Increased demand and diminishing new capacity will lead to an inflection point for logistics rents in a stronger second half of 2025, executives at the real estate developer say.

The announcement comes less than a month after FedEx said it would spin off FedEx Freight, which would be the largest standalone LTL provider in North America by revenue.

The largest intermodal provider in the US says it’s time for shippers to talk about higher rates for service but understands the shift is not likely to occur until the second half of the year.

With plenty of truck capacity still available, US shippers are trying to tamp down rising truck rates without driving off their current truckload carriers.

The Barstow International Gateway will be a transloading hub where the contents of ocean containers come to be transferred into 53-foot domestic containers to travel inland, ensuring quicker turnarounds of ocean boxes moving back to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Projections for North American intermodal will likely be upended by some “black swan” event that isn’t even on the radar right now as there seems to be no shortage of potential hot spots and disruptors looming, writes Larry Gross.

A handful of companies unveiled new products in the last week intended to enable decision-making based off the visibility data they provide.

The US producer price index shows LTL pricing has been flat since September, but carriers continue to push for annualized increases in service contracts.

Domestic intermodal providers are frustrated that they’ve been unable to win significant rate increases in contracts in early 2025, but capacity in trucking and rail is still abundant and easy to procure.

Shipper-paid spot truck pricing from major US ports rose faster than the average US rate in late 2024 as importers prepared for a potential longshore strike.