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US business activity stumbled in February, according to IHS Markit, perhaps in part due to the new coronavirus disease. That put more pressure on less-than-truckload shipping volumes.

The FMCSA is sending undisclosed changes to truck driver hours of service (HOS) rules to the White House for approval, raising hopes for greater flexibility in truck scheduling.

XPO Logistics’ founder and CEO plans to use money from the sale of non-trucking business units to increase technology spending at its less-than-truckload (LTL) operations, with a focus on pricing.

CRST International’s purchase of NAL Group is evidence that final-mile logistics is becoming an even greater priority for truckload carriers in a time of low freight demand and economic uncertainty.

The success of the newly combined equipment lessor FlexiVan-AIM will rest in part on whether shippers are ready to realize the benefits of data from GPS-equipped chassis, which can be used to improve efficiency of container movements between terminals and distribution centers.

A Southern California drayage software maker has raised more than $10 million to fund development of its marketplace for drivers and shippers, a sign the pace of investment in this once-overlooked freight segment won’t soon slow.

Domestic intermodal volumes rose in January year on year, but there is little else for intermodal marketing companies (IMCs) to feel good about right now.

Spot truck rates out of Los Angeles are weaker than usual, thanks in part to the coronavirus that has interrupted freight flows from China. Will restocking spark a pricing whiplash this spring?

Efforts to rein in excess capacity accelerated among large carriers, lowering the JOC Truckload Capacity Index to 85.2 in the fourth quarter. However, even that reading is still high.

DirectChassis Link, one of the three largest US chassis providers, will be exiting the Chicago cooperative chassis pool this year, a blow to those who envision a market in which any chassis can be used on any container.

Coyote Logistics predicts truckload contract rates will remain flat to down in 2020 versus a year ago, while spot rates will be higher than 2019 levels very soon.

The developer of a Texas industrial park scheduled to open in early 2021 says it will work with Kansas City Southern of Mexico to offer a shorter, cheaper way for Mexican manufacturers to ship goods to Houston and other Texas markets.

Truck tonnage increased for the second straight month in January, but a weak manufacturing sector and high inventories are keeping a lid on freight demand.

Truckload carrier Alabama Motor Express sees opportunities to grow by purchasing smaller carriers hit by rising truck insurance premiums.

US shippers are demanding more precise delivery times for their goods, as retail charges for late deliveries and better awareness of truck driver hours of service raise the stakes in visibility.

Non-asset intermodal providers want railroads to be more lenient on container charges and late fees when bidding for shipper business in order to become more competitive with the likes of J.B. Hunt Transport Services.

The long-promised National Freight Strategic Plan should be about more than highways, groups representing US ports and shippers said this week. The question still is how to pay for freight priorities.

XPO Logistics, Old Dominion Freight Line, and Saia are among LTL trucking companies that see encouraging, albeit modest and early, signs for economic growth in 2020.

Railroads are more conciliatory in negotiating contract rates than a year ago, hungry to recapture freight lost to trucking. One logistics executive called the railroads’ stance “a complete 180 from last year.”

A survey of delivery drivers projects that missed deliveries and time wasted due to outdated and incorrect maps and navigation aids results in $2.5 billion in added costs.

Mexican truckers are continuing to fight the imposition of state and municipal restrictions and fees on trucks, and they now face a federal legislator’s effort to ban double-tractor trailers from the nation’s roads.

The third-largest US LTL operator commits to ongoing reorganization, and sees glimmers of recovery in US manufacturing activity and freight demand in early 2020.

Roadrunner Freight is cutting transit times and investing in technology and facilities as it attempts to transform itself into a higher-service, customer-focused less-than-truckload carrier.

Just-in-time inventory pressures are creating more less-than-truckload shipments, giving Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Railway an opportunity to accelerate their domestic intermodal volume growth.

A federal bill similar to legislation in California and New Jersey that makes it tougher for workers to prove they are independent contractors received the backing of the US House of Representatives Thursday.

There are no positives to be found in the Intermodal Association of North America’s latest market report, which shows year-over-year volume fell 7.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2019 and 4.1 percent for the full year, with declines in all types of containers.

Despite trucking companies and brokers saying capacity is “rightsizing,” spot rates have not increased in tandem with volume and shippers could secure contract rate reductions for 2020.

Amid weak intermodal volumes in 2019, the JOC Domestic Intermodal Savings Index shows spot and contract savings are lower than historical averages, although the year closed stronger for shipper savings on the spot market.

Two regional LTL carriers say their new partnership will help increase domestic traffic and set up “international inland” moves in a six-state West Coast network.

A rush to secure space on trains leaving China could be looming amid coronavirus-related disruptions to air and ocean schedules. Shippers have been advised to plan capacity early.

In a lackluster market, ArcBest’s ABF Freight finds it necessary to judiciously mix truckload spot and traditional LTL freight, asset-based, and non-asset services.

Trucking companies and brokers expect low rates to persist a while longer despite a surge in December and early January, and there’s no consensus as to when, or if, a sustained turnaround will take hold later this year.

As its US network gets faster and more automated and e-commerce demand keeps growing, UPS is taking aim at small to mid-sized businesses in 2020.

Shippers, as much as carriers, are driving toward electronic or digital bills of lading, as the need for speed and more responsive, detailed customer service increases.

Railroads and intermodal providers say there will be more volume in 2020 than last year, although shipper demand will not fully recover until the second half of this year.

Truck volumes have flattened, not collapsed, a trucking analyst tells SMC3’s Jumpstart 2020 Conference. Truck capacity hit its peak in Q4 2019, and is expected to contract this year.

Mexico’s economy will stagnate this year after experiencing a technical recession in 2019 that saw GDP decline in the first three quarters, but the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement is expected to provide a much-needed boost.

Union Pacific Railroad will resume service on nearly 60 previously eliminated lanes beginning Feb. 1, a move it linked to its precision scheduled railroading operation, but others said was designed to win back lost market share.

The bottom of the current slump in US freight demand is approaching, but new threats, including the China coronavirus, are emerging, speakers at the SMC3 Jumpstart 2020 conference warned.

FlexiVan Leasing has announced a merger with American Intermodal Management, growing its US chassis pool by 12,500 units to 137,500 and acquiring new equipment.