Truck freight rates are still high in the United States for flatbeds, vans and reefer freights. Shippers have been paying a premium for several reasons. According to Fleet Owner, “shippers not only experienced escalating spot and contract rates in July but they were also hammered by port congestion, unloading delays, shortages of trucks and drivers, and more recently tighter intermodal capacity.”
On the DAT website, an article noted that, “the flatbed sector is the only one behaving as we’d normally expect the spot market to behave seasonally, with rates trending downward in August. In contrast, the dry van and reefer rates continued to climb, with the August average for van rates at $2.75/mile, reefer rates at $3.14/mile and flatbeds slipped to $3.06/mile.”
The holiday shipping season is around the corner which could contribute to the continued high shipping rates for van freight. This could increase the cost of consumer holiday shipments which is something to keep an eye on in the next few months.
Truckload rates remain elevated, but fall from June record levels | FleetOwner