ARLINGTON, Va. — The American Trucking Associations’ advanced seasonally adjusted For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index jumped up 8.2% in November, after a 0.3% drop during October. In November, the index equaled 142.4 up from 131.6 in October.

The all-time high was 144 in February.

Year-over-year the index increased 5.7%. Year-to-date, compared with the same period in 2015, tonnage was up 2.8%.

“2016 has been an interesting year for truck tonnage, with monthly gains and decreases as large as I can remember, which suggests seasonality is different this year,” said ATA chief economist Bob Costello. “November’s substantial increase continued with the seesaw pattern that has persisted for much of the year.

“While I think the November gain overstates the strength in the freight market, I do believe we are seeing some improvement that will continue into 2017. Retail sales are good, the housing market is solid, and the inventory overhang throughout the supply chain is coming down, all of which will help support truck freight volumes in 2017.”