Winter weather is driving significant spot activity in January, but the supply response in the past couple of months has been considerable, according to ACT Research's latest report on the Freight Market. While lower Class 8 supply over the past several months supports a return to rate increases in 2025, more capacity additions are to come, according to the latest release of the Freight Forecast: Rate and Volume OUTLOOK report.

“Winter weather has tightened the truckload spot market in January, and we see pre-tariff shipping supporting activity in 1H’25. The DAT load/truck ratio is jumping off the charts amid winter storms, and while rates are rising, the aggregate spot rate, net fuel, is still up just 5% y/y,” shared Tim Denoyer, ACT Research’s Vice President and Senior Analyst.

“With supply slowing and demand growth continuing, we see room for a modest acceleration in rates in 2025. But weather and inventory building are temporary, and, of course, pull-forwards have paybacks,” Denoyer concluded.