Major US companies are feeling the effects of the capacity shortage on their bottom lines, as earnings reports from late Q4 2017 and Q1 2018 are beginning to show.
One mega-sized company forecast a 10% transportation cost increase across the board, while another estimates an additional $200M logistics spend to achieve their goals.
This rise in logistics cost has plateaued for OTR van and reefer trailers (excepting open deck demand which is still rising), yet spot market rates remain at record highs.
As for contract rates, carriers are using the spot market for leverage, and shippers locking in contracts at higher rates to ensure availability and economy.
Rates have been rising due to several factors, ELDs, macroeconomy, driver shortage, etc…as outlined in this earlier post 2017 Logistics: Truck Transportation Rates.
The Bloomberg article can be seen here:
