Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

newsworthy

FedEx to raise LTL rates 6.9 percent

Memphis-based carrier's rate hikes follow similar action by rival ABF Freight System.

FedEx Corp. said Thursday it will raise its less-than-truckload (LTL) rates by 6.9 percent, effective Nov. 1, following in the footsteps of rival ABF Freight System, which is planning a 5.9-percent increase of its own.

In addition, the Memphis-based transportation and logistics giant will hike its air express rates by 5.9 percent, although the increase will be offset by a two percentage point reduction in the carrier's fuel surcharge. That increase takes effect Jan. 3.


Increases for FedEx's ground parcel service and its SmartPost product, which it offers in conjunction with the U.S. Postal Service, will be announced later in the year, FedEx said.

The rate increases for FedEx's regional and national units—whose operations are scheduled to be combined in January—follow ABF's announcement of its own rate hikes, which take effect Oct 1.

The LTL market continues to struggle with sluggish demand and cutthroat pricing, and it would surprise no one if large-scale shippers are able to significantly beat down the carriers' general rate increases. Still, with fewer drivers on the road and with new federal safety regulations set to take effect later this year that may disqualify as many as 7 percent of drivers, carriers may feel shippers would be willing to pay higher rates to sign longer-term contracts with guaranteed space.

John Smith, chairman of CRST International, a large privately held truckload carrier in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, said his company recently inked a three-year contract with one of its larger customers, the first time the company has ever signed such a long-term deal with that shipper. Smith spoke Wednesday at the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals' annual meeting in San Diego.

Smith added that demand and capacity are pretty much aligned at this time and that there is no new supply hitting the highways. "People are just now getting back to a replacement cycle" in terms of rig orders, Smith said. "No one is adding capacity."

The Latest

More Stories

Trucking industry experiences record-high congestion costs

Trucking industry experiences record-high congestion costs

Congestion on U.S. highways is costing the trucking industry big, according to research from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI), released today.

The group found that traffic congestion on U.S. highways added $108.8 billion in costs to the trucking industry in 2022, a record high. The information comes from ATRI’s Cost of Congestion study, which is part of the organization’s ongoing highway performance measurement research.

Keep ReadingShow less

Featured

From pingpong diplomacy to supply chain diplomacy?

There’s a photo from 1971 that John Kent, professor of supply chain management at the University of Arkansas, likes to show. It’s of a shaggy-haired 18-year-old named Glenn Cowan grinning at three-time world table tennis champion Zhuang Zedong, while holding a silk tapestry Zhuang had just given him. Cowan was a member of the U.S. table tennis team who participated in the 1971 World Table Tennis Championships in Nagoya, Japan. Story has it that one morning, he overslept and missed his bus to the tournament and had to hitch a ride with the Chinese national team and met and connected with Zhuang.

Cowan and Zhuang’s interaction led to an invitation for the U.S. team to visit China. At the time, the two countries were just beginning to emerge from a 20-year period of decidedly frosty relations, strict travel bans, and trade restrictions. The highly publicized trip signaled a willingness on both sides to renew relations and launched the term “pingpong diplomacy.”

Keep ReadingShow less
forklift driving through warehouse

Hyster-Yale to expand domestic manufacturing

Hyster-Yale Materials Handling today announced its plans to fulfill the domestic manufacturing requirements of the Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act for certain portions of its lineup of forklift trucks and container handling equipment.

That means the Greenville, North Carolina-based company now plans to expand its existing American manufacturing with a targeted set of high-capacity models, including electric options, that align with the needs of infrastructure projects subject to BABA requirements. The company’s plans include determining the optimal production location in the United States, strategically expanding sourcing agreements to meet local material requirements, and further developing electric power options for high-capacity equipment.

Keep ReadingShow less
map of truck routes in US

California moves a step closer to requiring EV sales only by 2035

Federal regulators today gave California a green light to tackle the remaining steps to finalize its plan to gradually shift new car sales in the state by 2035 to only zero-emissions models — meaning battery-electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and plug-in hybrid cars — known as the Advanced Clean Cars II Rule.

In a separate move, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also gave its approval for the state to advance its Heavy-Duty Omnibus Rule, which is crafted to significantly reduce smog-forming nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from new heavy-duty, diesel-powered trucks.

Keep ReadingShow less
screenshots for starboard trade software

Canadian startup gains $5.5 million for AI-based global trade platform

A Canadian startup that provides AI-powered logistics solutions has gained $5.5 million in seed funding to support its concept of creating a digital platform for global trade, according to Toronto-based Starboard.

The round was led by Eclipse, with participation from previous backers Garuda Ventures and Everywhere Ventures. The firm says it will use its new backing to expand its engineering team in Toronto and accelerate its AI-driven product development to simplify supply chain complexities.

Keep ReadingShow less