The Load Letter

Shippers moved less freight in Q2 but paid sharply more, and the culprit was tightening truck capacity, not fuel, signaling a capacity-led squeeze dressed up as a soft market. We break down Schneider's warning that driver capacity cuts run through year-end, a four-year-high manufacturing PMI feeding flatbed and LTL, and where dry van, reefer, and open deck rates sit today. Plus the states' lawsuit over new global tariffs and its whipsaw on port lanes, CMA CGM's $2.4B port bet, and Paccar's Kenworth and Peterbilt recall pulling fresh trucks off the road. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com

Oil fell nearly 5% overnight, and while diesel still sits at $5.13, relief is coming in the next 10-14 days, a quiet margin opportunity on spot freight if you don't hand it straight to carriers. We also cover Daimler shuttering its Portland truck plant and what it signals for capacity, a Louisiana CDL bribery scheme that should make you tighten carrier vetting, and Tyson's profit cut as a demand tell for reefer protein lanes. Plus cocoa-driven re-sourcing at Mondelēz and Hershey, Walmart's drone expansion, and Lufthansa quietly grounding freighters. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com

Oil tumbled nearly 7% over the weekend after U.S., Iran strikes paused, so diesel and your fuel surcharges are about to follow, adjust your surcharge math now before you overprice bids or hand back margin. Also inside: a new Detroit border crossing set to speed up Ontario-to-Midwest cross-border freight, Asia-to-U.S. ocean rates up 234% since February and the port-drayage wave headed for your domestic lanes, broker liability fallout from Montgomery v. Caribe Transport, a $1.5M cargo theft ring run through shipment tracking data, and Georgia's new truck-only I-75 lanes. Reprice for fuel, position capacity near the coasts, and keep your carrier vetting airtight. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com

Knight-Swift and Trucking Info both point to the same trend: a supply-driven capacity crunch is set to accelerate starting in September, and brokers who lock in carrier relationships now will be the ones who benefit come peak season. This episode also covers a dry van demand shift into overlooked lanes, a sharp reefer capacity reversal, flatbed opportunity tied to the AI data center buildout, the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern rail merger's threat to long-haul truckload, Aurora's driverless truck expansion in the Sun Belt, and a looming pharma tariff deadline that will pull import freight forward. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com

Brent crude jumped nearly $3 overnight on the Iran conflict, and brokers need to revisit fuel surcharges before carriers force the issue. Also in today's briefing: capacity-driven (not demand-driven) tightening means pricing this market as fragile, DAT flags a surprise demand pocket in dry van, flatbed brokers get a business development lane from AI-driven data center construction, Tropical Storm Bertha threatens Gulf Coast transit times, Friday's tariff deadline could trigger a short-term import surge, and Trimble's sale of its transportation division raises continuity questions for TMS and EDI tooling. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com

Ten nights of strikes on Iran just pushed Brent above $90 a barrel, and diesel at $4.80 is still catching up, so fuel surcharge language needs updating now. We also break down new 50% Section 338 tariffs hitting Canadian freight in 30 days, the case for July being a Goldilocks market as contracted freight gains on the load board, parcel fuel surcharges pushing shippers to shop mode-shift savings, an 11,000-driver DMV retest order in California, and a decisive slowdown in grocery unit sales worth watching for reefer capacity. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com

California reefer capacity tightened across six growing districts in a single week, already driving double-digit rate jumps in the Northeast, and brokers quoting last week's numbers are already behind. The Cass June data shows a telling disconnect between softening volumes and rising linehaul rates, with permanent capacity loss explaining the gap heading into Q3. Also covered: diesel at $4.58 and what it means for small carrier relationships, the Port of LA's record June and the inland freight surge coming in the next four to six weeks, flat manufacturing output as a warning for industrial lanes, and a CDL decertification petition that's unlikely to pass but worth watching in California. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.

The spring import surge is transitioning, LA posted its busiest June ever, but ocean rates are softening and a domestic freight hangover is building for import-heavy shippers. California reefer flipped tight across six districts simultaneously, Northeast rates are already moving double digits, and ATRI's record carrier cost numbers explain why flatbed is holding firm at $2.69 a mile. Also covered: Section 122 tariffs expire July 24 with a Section 301 swap expected, J.B. Hunt's Q2 call on DOT enforcement thinning the carrier base, and a new DHL air cargo route connecting Southeast Asia to Cincinnati. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.

Iran's threat to block energy exports sent Brent crude up sixty-three cents in a single session, and with diesel already at $4.58 and Q3 fuel costs projecting higher, brokers need to get in front of shipper FSC conversations before the market moves further. Also in today's briefing: the Port of Long Beach posts its third-busiest June on record, flatbed spot leads all modes at $2.69 on strong manufacturing and construction demand, parcel rate pain is creating a truckload business development opening, and Project44 is splitting into two companies, one of them built specifically for brokers and 3PLs. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.

Brent crude surged nearly 15% in two days and diesel is at $4.58 a gallon, and brokers need to check FSC table alignment on contract lanes before carriers come knocking. Manufacturing backlogs are at their highest since late 2022 as businesses stockpile ahead of a volatile second half, setting up a capacity tightening story for Q3. Also covered: the Gordie Howe Bridge opens July 27th and what it means for US-Canada Midwest lanes, DP World's Hormuz bypass port plans, a Project44 split targeting LSPs directly, the General Mills supply chain overhaul, and an Illinois class-action suit on contractor classification. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.