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Freight Market

12 briefings, newest first.

  1. The Inversion Flipped: Transpacific Rates Surge as Truckload Cools

    Ocean rates climb to $4,526 per box with Shanghai–New York up 9%, while truckload spot rates roll over and flatbed posts its steepest drop since 2008.

  2. Section 301 Replaces Section 122 Without a Gap

    Section 122's 10% surcharge expires and new Section 301 duties take effect the same minute, while diesel jumps on Hormuz and the Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern merger clears another hurdle.

  3. Peak Season Kicks the Door Down

    Ocean spot rates jump 20–31% in a week, factory activity hits a four-year high, and truckload spot runs its hottest since 2022 as consumer confidence slips.

  4. A Supreme Court Ruling Upends Freight Brokerage

    The Supreme Court's 9-0 Montgomery ruling strips brokers of a key liability defense, the STB accepts the Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern application, and Beijing's trade deals stay on paper.

  5. Rates Up, Carriers Down: A Week of Opposite Signals

    Container rates hit a 2026 high while Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd and ZIM post losses, the Trump–Xi summit yields a 200-plane Boeing order, and consumer sentiment sets another record low.

  6. Tariff Pass-Through Finally Shows Up in the Data

    April PPI jumps 1.4%, nearly triple forecasts, as wholesalers pass tariffs through, and the Federal Circuit pauses the ruling that struck down the Section 122 tariff.

  7. Court Strikes Down Section 122 as Consumer Sentiment Hits an All-Time Low

    The Court of International Trade invalidates the 10% Section 122 tariff, surcharges lift container rates 3%, and consumer sentiment falls to 48.2, the lowest since 1952.

  8. Ocean Rates Soften Through a War as Truckload Hits 12-Year Highs

    Q1 GDP misses at +2.0% with hot inflation, the CAPE refund portal posts its first data, Union Pacific refiles its $85 billion merger, and truckload spot rates hit a 12-year high.

  9. Iran Seizes MSC Francesca and Turns Hormuz Into a Trade Weapon

    Iran captures an 11,660-TEU container ship in the war's first containership seizure, turning what carriers treated as an energy disruption into a shipping-lane closure.

  10. Blockade Breaks the Ocean Rate Rally as Consumer Sentiment Hits a Record Low

    A U.S. Navy blockade knocks ocean rates off a six-week peak, consumer sentiment falls to a record low, diesel posts its first decline in 12 weeks, and MODEX puts physical AI into production.

  11. A Fragile U.S.–Iran Ceasefire Moved Markets, Not the Disruption

    Oil drops $20 and stocks surge on the ceasefire, but Hormuz stays largely blocked, Section 232 metals tariffs take effect, and diesel climbs to $5.64.

  12. The Hormuz Blockade Reshapes Every Freight Mode at Once

    Diesel hits $5.38 as the Hormuz crisis enters its fourth week, container rates rise for a third straight week, the Fed raises its inflation outlook, and Amazon overtakes USPS in parcels.