After posting a positive gain in June, the American Trucking Assns. (ATA) advance seasonally adjusted (SA) for-hire Truck Tonnage Index declined in July.
The Index fell 1.3% in July after posting a 2.6% increase in June. The SA index now stands at 114 in July, down from the June level of 115.5.
The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by the fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 111 in July, which was 9% below the previous month.
“We had heard that freight weakened from a robust June, that that was true,” ATA chief economist Bob Costello said. “Despite a solid June, our Truck Tonnage Index fits with an economy that is growing very slowly. The good news is that tonnage continues to increase on a year-over-year basis, but it is likely that the rate of growth will moderate in the second half of the year.”
Compared with July 2010, SA tonnage was up 3.9%. In June, the tonnage index was 6.5% above a year earlier.
