Tonnage up 3.1% in January

ATA index up 5.7% year-over-year

The American Trucking Associations’ advance seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index jumped 3.1 percent in January following a revised 1.3 percent increase in December 2009. The latest gain boosted the SA index from 107 in December to 110.4 in January, its highest level since September 2008. The nonseasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 99.5 in January, down 3.3 percent from the previous month.

ATA’s Truck Tonnage Index Seasonally adjusted; 2000 = 100 -- ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello says the latest tonnage reading indicates that both the industry and the economy are clearly in a recovery mode.

Compared with January 2009, SA tonnage surged 5.7 percent, which was the best year-over-year reading since January 2005 and the second consecutive increase. For all of 2009, the tonnage index was down 8.7 percent – slightly larger than the previously reported 8.3 percent drop – the largest annual decrease since a 12.3 percent plunge in 1982.

ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello says the latest tonnage reading, coupled with anecdotal reports from carriers, indicates that both the industry and the economy are clearly in a recovery mode. “While I don’t expect tonnage to continue growing as robustly as it did in January, the industry is finally moving in the right direction,” Costello says. “Although there are still risks that could throw the rebound offtrack, the likelihood of that happening continues to diminish.”

ATA calculates the tonnage index based on surveys from its membership. The report includes month-to-month and year-over-year results, relevant economic comparisons and key financial indicators. The baseline year is 2000.

In brief

 FTR Associates released preliminary data showing February Class 8 truck total net orders for all major North American OEMs at 7,628 units, 19.7 percent higher than January when orders were the lowest since 2002. While February compared positively to the previous month as well as to February 2009, orders remained significantly below the 2009 monthly average of 10,064 units.