Truck tonnage up 0.6% in January

U.S. trucks hauled slightly more freight in January compared to December, although year-over-year totals for January were higher and marked the fifth straight such gain, according to the American Trucking Associations’ (ATA) monthly, seasonally adjusted Truck Tonnage Index, released today.

Truck tonnage for January was up 0.6% compared to December and up 1.2% compared to January 2021. The index is based on data from ATA members and is dominated by contract freight, according to the association.

January’s sequential increase followed a 0.9% sequential gain in December and was helped by rising retail sales and factory output, ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said in a statement announcing the monthly results. Before adjusting for seasonality, the January index was down 4.3% compared to December.

Overall, tonnage was up 0.3% in 2021 compared to 2020. In 2020, tonnage was off 4% compared to 2019, ATA said.