ARLINGTON, Va. — US truck tonnage rose 0.3% in November after rising a revised 0.4% in October, according to the most recent figures from the American Trucking Associations. October’s increase was slightly less than the 0.5% gain ATA previously reported.  

Compared with November 2010, seasonally-adjusted tonnage was up 6.0%, the largest year-over-year gain since a 6.5% increase in June. In October, the tonnage index was 5.7% above a year earlier. Year-to-date, compared with the same period last year, tonnage is up 5.4%.
 
“As I said last month, tonnage levels continue to point to an economy that is growing, not sliding into a recession,” said ATA chief economist Bob Costello. “Over the last three months, tonnage is up 2.3% and stands at the highest level since January of this year.
 
“Two primary factors have helped truck tonnage in recent months. First, manufacturing output, which generates a significant amount of truck freight, has generally been increasing. Second, retail inventories are very lean, which is helping freight as well since retailers don’t have much excess stock and need to replenish when sales go up.”