The latest release of ACT’s For-Hire Trucking Index, with May data, showed significant improvement in all five diffusion index measures tracked, the company says.
May’s Volume Index rose from 19.3 in April to 50.2, with capacity also at the neutral 50 mark, and pricing and productivity both in the mid-40 range.
“After the worst reading in survey history in April, the Volume Index increased 30.9 points in the largest month-over-month increase in survey history in May,” Tim Denoyer, ACT Research’s vice president and senior analyst said. “While we’d characterize this as neutral territory, and it may be supported by inventory rebuilding following the draw-down in March and April, it is nonetheless a much more stable volume environment.”
Regarding the uptick in freight rates, Denoyer said, “The record 21.2 point recovery in May, also the largest month-over-month increase in survey history, to 43.0 means that despite effectively recovering all the ground lost in April, the Pricing Index remains in contraction territory. And while still tentative, the trends of a strong rebound in freight volumes as a capacity tightening cycle has begun shows a bottoming process is well under way.”
