US truck tonnage was robust in January: ATA

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ARLINGTON, Va. — US for-hire truck tonnage surged 2.9% in January, following up a strong 2.4% gain in December, according to the American Trucking Associations.

December’s gain was revised down from the originally reported 2.8%. Still, tonnage has now increased at least 2.4% every month since November, gaining a total of 9.1% over that time, the ATA reports.

The seasonally-adjusted for-hire truck tonnage index was up 6.5% year-over-year in January, marking the best y-o-y gain since December 2011. In fact, January’s index was the highest on record, the ATA reported.

“The trucking industry started 2013 with a bang, reflected in the best January tonnage report in five years,” ATA chief economist Bob Costello said. “While I believe that the overall economy will be sluggish in the first quarter, trucking likely benefited in January from an inventory destocking that transpired late last year, thus boosting volumes more than normal early this year as businesses replenish those lean inventories.”

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