Focusing on scale and productivity helps freight brokers offset weak demand and rates, protect margins and position for growth. In this Talking Transports podcast, Drew Wilkerson, chairman and CEO of RXO, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share how the company is navigating the current challenging freight environment and looking ahead for when the market eventually turns. Wilkerson provides insights into the benefits and integration of the Coyote Logistics purchase from UPS in September. He expects the freight-brokerage industry to continue to consolidate from the current top nine brokers, which account for over 50% of volume. Wilkerson also touches on AI’s impact on its business, the importance of its customer-centric culture and how the broker is dealing with the uncertain times.

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Union Pacific’s $88 billion bid for Norfolk Southern could usher in a new era for the North American railroad industry if the companies can show the Surface Transportation Board that the deal will enhance competition and is in the public interest. In this Talking Transports podcast, Tony Hatch, founder and president of ABH Consulting, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share his insights about the merits and challenges of a possible merger between the two large railroads. UP and NS will need to make their case to all stakeholders, which include shippers, workers, Norfolk shareholders and regulators, who could be the most difficult to persuade. The downstream effect of a deal or perceived likelihood of regulatory approval could lead to further consolidation among Class I carriers.

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Emerging technologies like AI and machine learning could become essential tools for freight brokers to fight fraud, boost productivity and enhance customer service — key steps toward easing margin pressure in a market weighed down by stagnant rates and soft demand. In this episode of Talking Transports, Armstrong Transport Group CEO Cameron Ramsdell joins Bloomberg Intelligence’s senior transportation and logistics analyst Lee Klaskow to discuss the state of third-party logistics market, how Armstrong is gaining market share, the impact of tariffs, recent transportation M&A and how his disillusionment with politics led him into the freight world.

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Uncertainty and inflationary pressures tied to the Trump administration’s tariff policies may delay the trucking market’s recovery until next year. In this episode of the Talking Transports podcast, Dr. Jason Miller, a professor in supply chain management at Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to discuss how inflation may limit interest-rate cuts and weigh on consumer demand. Stronger demand will be key to tightening truck market conditions, especially as capacity exits remain sluggish. Miller also covers key freight indicators, chronic driver turnover, the outlook for autonomous trucking and the evolution of his mustache.

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The US’ shifting trade policies are creating challenges for shippers and contributing to a volatile freight environment. Freight forwarders that lean into technologies like artificial intelligence or machine learning can help shippers reduce costs and improve efficiency. In this episode of the Talking Transports podcast, Ryan Petersen, the founder and CEO of Flexport, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share his insights about how they are helping their clients navigate the changing tariff landscape and boosting their productivity through tech investments. Petersen also shares views on the state of the ocean and airfreight markets, and explains how automation in freight forwarding is lowering the cost to serve — allowing the company to scale and compete more aggressively on price.

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The trucking industry is facing rising costs due to a growing number of jury awards exceeding $10 million, commonly known as nuclear verdicts. Plaintiff attorneys are seeing greater success by using more aggressive tactics, leveraging jurors’ emotions, expanding advertising and applying best practices learned from prior trials — all of which are contributing to the rise in nuclear verdicts. In this episode of the Talking Transports podcast, Robyn Kazatsky, a partner at Lock Gordon Law Group, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence’s senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share her insights about how these verdicts are affecting the industry. Kazatsky also discusses third-party litigation funding, the push for tort reform, strategies trucking companies can use to mitigate risk, and how the impact of nuclear verdicts extends well beyond the companies directly involved.

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Short-line railroads are a critical and sometimes underappreciated part of local, national and global supply chains. They provide first-mile and last-mile services to connect shippers and extend the reach of Class I rails. In this Talking Transports podcast, Michael Miller, the CEO of Genesee & Wyoming, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share his insights about the evolution of the company from a consolidator to one focused on organic growth and how it benefits from being private and investing through the cycle. Miller also talks railroad demand, consolidation, regulations, technology, pricing, free cash flow, tariffs and how his wife got him into railroading.

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Geopolitical risks like the crisis in the Red Sea or more protectionist trade policies are increasing inefficiencies in global shipping, which will require more ships to move the same amount of freight. In this Talking Transports podcast, Jan Rindbo, CEO of D/S Norden, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share insights about how its dry-bulk and product-tanker fleets are navigating the uncertainty. A more favorable order book is making the dry-bulk outlook brighter relative to the product tankers. Rindbo also talks about Norden’s focus on biofuels to reduce emissions, entrance into the break-bulk market, returning capital to shareholders and how his desire to see the world led him to a long career in shipping.

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Earnings growth for transportation and logistics providers will be driven by when the freight cycle will finally turn. The uncertain economic backdrop has made calling the cycle increasingly difficult for market participants. In this Talking Transports podcast, Ravi Shanker, managing director and lead North American freight transportation and airlines analyst at Morgan Stanley, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share his insights about what could be in store for 2Q earnings and the rest of the year. They touch upon the truckload, less-than-truckload, railroad, intermodal parcel, forwarding and freight brokerage subsegments. Shanker remains optimistic about truckload rates this year, which is driving his overweight rating on most carriers in the space. He also discusses rail consolidation, airlines, autonomous trucking, technology and which stocks he prefers heading into earnings.

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E-commerce’s ease and convenience for consumers will fuel its growth, with Bloomberg Intelligence forecasting it will reach $2.9 trillion in US sales by 2030, making up 34% of retail vs. 25% last year. That growth doesn’t come without challenges for shippers and their transportation partners. In this Talking Transports podcast, Chris Guggenheim, founder and CEO of ClearJet, joins Lee Klaskow, Bloomberg Intelligence senior transportation and logistics analyst, to share his insights about how the company’s technology-based platform and network of capacity partners are trying to make e-commerce logistics more nimble and cheaper for shippers. Guggenheim also talks tapping underutilized commercial-airline capacity, building out a parcel network, being a serial entrepreneur and how a job with Willie Nelson put him on the road to logistics.

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