National average spot truckload van and refrigerated freight rates slipped below December averages during the week ending Jan. 19 after a strong start to the month, said DAT Solutions, which operates the trucking and logistics industry’s largest load board network. There was better news for flatbed haulers as the national average spot flatbed rate crept higher on the strength of new oil and gas projects.
National average spot rates, January (through Jan. 19):
- Van: $1.91 per mile, 3 cents below the December average
- Reefer: $2.29 per mile, down 1 cent from December
- Flatbed: $2.19 per mile, up 2 cents from December
Van trends: The van load-to-truck ratio was 2.1 last week, meaning there were 2.1 loads for every truck posted on the DAT network. That’s down from 3.2 in the previous two weeks, and van rates generally shifted lower as a result.
Most of the lanes with better rates last week don’t pay well to begin with, and those increases were offset by poor rates for the return trip. Still, there were lanes where the roundtrip average was priced better for carriers last week compared to the previous week:
- Seattle to Spokane was up 12 cents to $3.29 per mile. Spokane to Seattle lost 4 cents to $2.84, although load availability was low. The roundtrip averaged $3.06.
- Denver to Phoenix was up 4 cents to $1.34 per mile. Phoenix to Denver paid $2.27, down 10 cents, for a roundtrip average of $1.81. Running between Denver and Albuquerque paid better at an average of $2.06 per loaded mile.
- Dallas to Memphis was up 5 cents to $1.33 per mile. Memphis to Dallas dropped 4 cents to $2.38 for a roundtrip average of $1.86.
- Chicago to Los Angeles rose 5 cents to $1.55 per mile. L.A. to Chicago fell 2 cents to $1.37 for a roundtrip average of $1.46. At least there were lots of loads to choose from.
Flatbed trends: Low flatbed rates tend to be lower in January, when volumes are down. What’s different this year is that after reducing the number of active wells in 2019, U.S. oil and gas producers have added wells this month, and spot pricing is reflecting higher demand to support additional production. Rates were higher on several lanes from Houston, for example:
- Houston to Fort Worth: $2.51 per mile, up 8 cents. Fort Worth to Houston averaged $2.13 per loaded mile, up 3 cents.
- Houston to Laredo: $2.45 per mile, up 12 cents. Laredo to Houston increased 2 cents to $2.19.
- Houston to Lubbock: $2.48, up 13 cents. The return trip averaged just $1.28, however.
Expect more flatbed activity in the Upper Mountain and Plains states come Spring. This week the Trump administration approved a right-of-way grant allowing for the Keystone XL pipeline to be built across 44 miles of federally managed land in Montana. While the project still faces court challenges, flatbeds are being used to stage building materials and supplies at future construction sites.
