Covenant Reports Driver Market Tightening for First Time in 40 Months
Chattanooga carrier sees Q1 net income fall to $4.4M but says capacity is shrinking, driver pay talks are back, and rate momentum is building into Q2.
Tess Crawford
Markets, Rates, Fuel & Carrier Business
Tess Crawford tracks the money flowing through trucking, spot and contract rates, diesel and crude markets, fuel surcharges, lane capacity, freight demand, LTL tonnage and yield, plus the carrier-business side: bankruptcies, M&A, layoffs, and insurance pricing. She writes for the dispatcher checking the load board between calls and the small-fleet owner reading the P&L over coffee.
Descartes Buys Fleet Safety Platform Idelic for $28M Cash
The deal adds 40 billion miles of driver data and AI-powered accident prediction to Descartes' logistics network: the 36th acquisition since 2016.
Union Pacific Posts Record Q1 Revenue Despite 1% Volume Drop
Operating income up 4% to $2.45 billion as the Class I railroad improves velocity and cuts terminal dwell to 19.7 hours, but premium traffic falls 9%.
Norfolk Southern Profit Falls 27% in Q1 as Insurance Bump Ends
The Class I railroad posted a sharp earnings drop after insurance payments from the East Palestine derailment dried up: a reminder that one-time windfalls…
Brent Crude Swings $4 in Morning Trade, Settles at $105.38
June Brent crude bounced between $103 and $107 per barrel Friday morning on Iran ceasefire speculation before closing up 0.3%.
Knight-Swift Targets 10%+ Rate Hikes as Capacity Exits Accelerate
Phoenix mega-carrier reports Q1 loss but tells investors mini-bids are multiplying and awarded contracts are being rejected because prices moved since January.
Flatbed Spot Rates Jump 8¢ While Dry Van and Reefer Slide
Flatbed linehaul climbed to $2.61/mile last week, the second straight 8-cent gain, while dry van and reefer rates dropped as load counts fell across all three…
Diesel Drops 21 Cents, Then Crude Hits $100, What Happens Next
National average fell to $5.40/gallon this week, but Brent crude spiked over $100/barrel as Iran ceasefire uncertainty keeps the Strait of Hormuz in play.
Unbundled Maintenance vs. Full-Service Lease: The Cost Gap Widens
For fleets running 10 or more trucks, the choice between managing maintenance in-house and paying a bundled monthly rate now carries a bigger margin penalty…