Free Republic

The only thing surprising about the freight market slowdown is the speed at which it’s unfolding. The supply chain “bullwhip effect” is both predictable and expected. The surge of inventories and declining freight costs/capacity imbalances will be deflationary. The trucking market has slowed. Demand for trucks usually surges during the Spring, but this year, demand for truckload freight has broken out of this typical seasonal pattern.Outbound Tender Volume Index (OTVI) is an index which measures the volume of truckload order requests in the contract truckload market. The OTVI chart shows year over year activity from 2018 to this year.The bullwhip...

Prices at the pump have now soared to $4.173 per gallon for regular gasoline, according to Price Information Service (OPIS). This firm collects and calculates US pump prices for American Automobile Association (AAA). On Monday evening, prices surpassed the previous record high set in 2008 and continue marching higher Tuesday. As gasoline prices increase and inflation reaches the highest levels in four decades, times are becoming much harder for the average consumer, experiencing a persistent rise in the prices of many goods and services. Steeper gas and food prices have forced millions of people to rejigger household budgets. The latest...