Welcome to another Weekly Report. We cover all the latest data as well as hitting a new story of the week. This week’s story – OEMs could find it difficult to keep pace with the record level of truck orders being placed.
Numbers At A Glance – April 28, 2021
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Truck Driver Searches |
| WoW: Δ Up 19% |
|---|
| MoM: Δ Up 24% |
| YoY: Δ Up 136% |
Load Volume |
| WoW: ∇ Down .3% Comes off record high last week. |
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Volume by Segment |
| WoW: Dry Van ∇ Down 5% Largest decline in 6 weeks. |
|---|
| WoW: Refrigerated Δ Up .5% |
| WoW: Flatbed Δ Up 1% Sets an all-time high record for the 8th time in 9 weeks. |
Spot Rates |
| WoW: Δ Up 6¢ per mile 3rd consecutive week rates have reached record levels. |
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Clicks On Truck Driver Postings |
| WoW: Δ Up 5% |
|---|
| MoM: Δ Up 9% |
| YoY: ∇ Down 28% |
Truck Postings |
| WoW: ∇ Down 1% |
|---|
Truck Posting by Segment |
| WoW: Dry Van Δ Up 2.5% |
|---|
| WoW: Refrigerated ∇ Down 4% |
| WoW: Flatbed ≡ Flat |
Rates by Segment |
| WoW: Dry Van ∇ Down 4¢ per mile |
|---|
| WoW: Refrigerated ∇ Down 2¢ per mile |
| WoW: Flatbed Δ Up 9¢ per mile |
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Download the PDF for the April 28, 2021, Weekly Report
Would you like to have your own copy of the trucking industry data? All of the information covered in this week’s report for April 28, 2021, is available for your convenience in PDF form below. just click the image and presto!
Click the image to download your PDF.
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Weekly Report – April 28, 2021 Transcript
Welcome to the Weekly Report, for Randall-Reilly, I’m Joshua Miller. Let’s jump right in.
THIS WEEK IN JOB BOARD SEARCHES AND CLICKS
Truck driver searches were up across the board at 19% WoW, 24% MoM, and 136% YoY. Clicks on truck driver postings were up 5% WoW and 9% MoM, but down 28% YoY.
These numbers continue the trend we saw last week with both search volume and click volume on the rise. The available data seems to suggest that drivers are beginning to show an increased interest in looking for jobs, but … they are remaining highly selective on which job posts they actually click on.
That being said, click volume was at the highest level since the week of March 8th, which also just so happens to be the week the stimulus bill was passed and signed. And search activity rose to the highest level we’ve seen in this calendar year.
Another trend we’re beginning to see is that the student driver CPL is going down, while student clicks are up by 24% and searches are up by 31%. So, all in all, that’s great news for those of you looking to target students.
THIS WEEK IN FREIGHT
Load postings dipped from last week’s all-time high, but only slightly, dropping .3% WoW. Dry van saw its largest decline in six weeks falling by 5% WoW. This decrease, however, does not change the fact that demand has remained consistently stable since early March.
Refrigerated rose ever so slightly by .5% WoW, and flatbed is back setting yet another volume record. Rising by 1% WoW flatbed has now set a record volume level for the eighth time in nine weeks.
Truck postings were down 1% WoW overall, but dry van was up by 2.5% WoW. Refrigerated dipped by 4% and flatbed remained FLAT WoW. The ratio of loads to trucks was virtually unchanged from last week, and that ratio was at the seventh-highest level on record.
Spot rates rose by 6¢ per mile and it too sets another all-time high. This makes the third consecutive week spot rates have reached record levels. But … just like last week it was flatbed alone, responsible for the increases. Flatbed rates increased by 9¢ WoW while dry van fell by 4¢ and refrigerated dropped by 2¢ per mile WoW.
The rising spot rate average highlights the overall trend we’ve mentioned here before about pay. In general pay is consistently mentioned by drivers as a key influencing factor when it comes to changing to a new or sticking with their current fleet. If you are tinkering with pay it’s worth noting that guaranteed pay is the most popular among drivers. In today’s competitive market, if you’re going to try and stand out and use your pay to do so, you may want to consider that moving forward.
NOW FOR OUR STORY OF THE WEEK
Heavy truck order levels over the past six months or so have been unprecedented. Orders in March surpassed 40,000 units alone and March was the sixth consecutive month to do so. Class 8 orders now total 372,000 in the last 12 months.
Sales volumes this year will likely be determined by the manufacturers’ ability to keep up with the elevated demand. Many OEMs are currently struggling to keep up with that high demand due to the semiconductor shortage we mentioned last week, in addition to worker shortages at the supplier plants.
The bad news is this shortage of vital semiconductors is likely to last for at least the next few months. The worker shortages, however, could begin to ease as vaccinations increase and more and more people begin to re-enter the workforce. Shortages on other components shipped from overseas will, unfortunately, take a few months to work itself out due to the backups at shipping ports. These supply chain challenges could force the trucking industry to play catch-up well into the first half of next year.
Because of all these shortages and the ongoing delays, many fleets find themselves currently unable to replace aging equipment. That means if you are among the carriers who have new or at least newer equipment, that is a major advantage your recruiters need to highlight and bring up with prospective drivers. As inspection numbers begin to rise, having new equipment isn’t just a perk for drivers, it could be an advantage that keeps them on the road longer instead of being dinged and having to deal with aging equipment. which means, your drivers are happy and, on the road, and your fleet is moving freight instead of dealing with inspection and repair headaches.
That does it for another edition of the Weekly Report. Join us back here next Wednesday morning for a look at all the latest data and another story of the week. Until then, have a great week everybody.
