Truckers haul less freight in January but outlook stays rosy

U.S. truckers handled less freight in January after enjoying a leap in December

“Last month, I said I was surprised by the size of the gain in December,” Bob Costello, chief economist for the American Trucking Associations    , said in a written statement. “Today, I’m not surprised that tonnage fell on a seasonally adjusted basis in January simply due to the fact that December was so strong.”

The trade association has an index to monitor for-hire truck tonnage. The advanced, seasonally adjusted index dropped by 5 percentage points in January, coming off a 6.8 percentage-point gain in December.

The index now stands at 119.4, down from December’s record of 124.4. The freight level in 2000 equals 100 on the index.  Full Story......