Game Changer: Diesel Drops Below $3 Per Gallon

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RATES

FUEL SURCHARGE AND ARBITRAGE

CARGO TYPES

MARKET- AND REGION-SPECIFIC VOLUME

Total rate for van hit $2.08 per mile in March, June, and December. Those are the highest van rates DAT has ever recorded since we began measuring spot data in 2009.

Also, the December 2014 van linehaul rate was up 18.2% Y-O-Y. For all of 2014, the total van rate advanced 11.3% over 2013 levels. With fuel surcharge changes, it can be difficult to find context for total rate, hence analysts focus on linehaul rates.

For all of 2014, van linehaul rates rose 16.4% and both flatbed and refrigerated van linehaul rates climbed 12.6%. These double digit increases enable carriers to pay for improved wages & benefits and buy replacement equipment. In the truckload sector, falling fuel prices should be revenue neutral for carriers. In fact, there is a tailwind because replacement fuel has been lower than the amount collected from the fuel surcharge.

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