Less-than-truckload carriers saw declining shipment volumes in August 2025, reflecting broader economic softness.
Old Dominion Freight Line’s (CCJ Top 250, No. 9) tonnage fell -9.2%, XPO (No. 7) at -4.7% and Saia (No. 19) at -2.2%. ArcBest (No. 15) having a modest increase of 2%.
Spending money to make money
ArcBest was the only exception with a 5% shipment growth per day, attributed to adding “new core LTL business.” According to an SEC filing, the carrier expects to generate approximately $25 million in net proceeds from real estate sales during Q3, making an estimated pre-tax gain of about $16 million.
The LTL carrier also pointed a welcome challenge in a difficult market: paying higher cartage expenses to win new customers.
“Third quarter cartage expense has increased both year-over-year and sequentially due to greater reliance on outside cartage resources at certain locations following recent new business wins,” the filing noted. ArcBest sees it as a temporary problem as it noted “this reliance is expected to decline over time as hiring progresses in affected markets.”
In addition, the company is working on improving their pricing strategy with “a recent pricing review identified account- and lane-level adjustments to enhance profitability.”
[RELATED: Old Dominion, XPO, and Saia see shipment declines as freight demand softens]
Economic pressures
The carriers also reported decreased weight per shipment, except for Saia, which noted a 1% increase.
ArcBest and ODFL cited softness in manufacturing and housing markets as key headwinds affecting demand.
ArcBest noted its profit margins are getting squeezed. Its SEC filing stated, “The variance from prior expectations for the third quarter is attributable to lower-than-anticipated weight per shipment, reflecting ongoing macroeconomic pressures, including continued softness in manufacturing and housing activity.”
Marty Freeman, president and CEO of Old Dominion, also said that August’s revenue results highlighted the continued softness in the domestic economy.
Though the company saw its shipment volumes decrease compared to last year, Freeman said the growth in revenue per hundredweight “demonstrates the value that our customers realize from our consistent commitment to superior service.”
Freeman said ODFL is confident in its ability to capture profitable market share over time.
