Truckload spot rates pulled back modestly from their mid-summer peak during the week of July 13, marking the arrival of the traditional July lull in the US freight market. Transportation Insight reported that the pullback does not indicate a market reversal. Spot rates remain roughly 55 percent above year-ago benchmarks, fleet counts continue to decline, and carriers that left the market over the past three years have not come back.
Shippers repricing contracts for the second half of 2026 are encountering a different negotiating environment. Conversations that centered on rate levels earlier in the cycle have shifted toward securing service commitments. Carriers are directing available capacity to existing customers first and adding new business selectively where network fit is favorable. Rate compression is more visible on van equipment than on refrigerated or flatbed, a difference the report attributes to demand variation across commodity categories.
Less-than-truckload capacity tightened across major Midwestern markets during the same week. Regional embargoes on selected service areas blocked pickups and deliveries while carriers worked through volume backlogs built up during a June surge. Additional regional LTL capacity has exited the market, and the report notes that the capital investment and hub-and-spoke infrastructure required to operate at scale make new LTL carrier formation difficult in the near term. The driver shortage has extended into the LTL sector, limiting the ability of financially healthy carriers to absorb displaced volume.
On the parcel side, USPS pricing changes took effect July 12, including a dimensional weight divisor reduction from 166 to 139 for Ground Advantage Commercial packages over one cubic foot. Import volumes tracked above year-ago levels ahead of tariff increases scheduled for July 24.
Source: Transportation Insight - https://transportationinsight.com/resources/transportation-industry-trends-july-13-17-2026/