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Weekly Freight Market Update: Signs of Spring

Industry Insights, ShippersPublished on March 9, 2019

Compared to last week, freight volume decreased about 2.5% across the country. Tender rejection rates have remained stable (hanging around 7%).

The upcoming lettuce harvest in the Southeast indicates the first sign of spring. Harvest appears to have begun in some parts of Florida, and reefer prices from southern and central Florida have increased.

On the other side of the country, Phoenix found shipment volume up nearly 30% as produce shippers headed into harvest season there. Reefer shipments will be in high demand over the next 60 days — and will soon compete with shipments starting to come across the border into Nogales, Arizona.

Daylight Savings Safety

On Sunday, March 10, 2 a.m. becomes 3 a.m. as daylight savings time begins. This causes confusion for carriers and facility workers if a pickup time is scheduled during those early-morning hours. Be sure to confirm the right appointment time, and take extra caution on the road.

Researchers from Johns Hopkins and Stanford University report an increase in accidents on U.S. roads following the time change. ELDs now account for the time change automatically — just remember HOS rules are centered around actual hours driven, regardless of what time it is.

Stay on top of the trends impacting your lanes

See a detailed breakdown of trends in your region with the Convoy Shipper Platform. The Market Outlook curates a view of freight impacts and trends by region to give you a full picture of the market. It’s free to access: Simply sign in or register now.

Author

Convoy Team

Convoy is the nation's leading digital freight network. We move thousands of truckloads around the country each day through our optimized, connected network of carriers, saving money for shippers, increasing earnings for drivers, and eliminating carbon waste for our planet. We use technology and data to solve problems of waste and inefficiency in the $800B trucking industry, which generates over 87 million metric tons of wasted CO2 emissions from empty trucks. Fortune 500 shippers like Anheuser-Busch, P&G, Niagara, and Unilever trust Convoy to lower costs, increase logistics efficiency, and achieve environmental sustainability targets.
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