IC_11-16_OnlinEdition

Independent Contractor
NEWS
industry has seen soft volumes in 2016 due to
bloated inventories and a weak manufacturing
environment.
“The current cycle of larger than normal
inventories has taken longer than usual to resolve
itself,” Costello said here during ATA’s
Management Conference & Exhibition.
“Coupled with weakness in the manufacturing
sector, we’ve seen softer than typical
volumes in both the truckload and less-thantruckload
sectors. However, I am hopeful that
we are nearing the bottom of this cycle and
will soon expect a modest rebound.”
Costello said that both truckload and lessthan-truckload
carriers added truck capacity
in 2015, which makes the current environment
feel even more challenging.
“Also, truckload carriers have added
trailer capacity of late, likely in advance of
the approaching electronic logging device
compliance deadline,” he said. “More small
and medium fleets will, I believe, try to
compensate for the impact of ELDs by doing
more drop and hook to reduce wait times.”
In addition, Costello emphasized the role
that trade plays in trucking – pointing out
that since 1995, the value of goods moved by
trucks between the U.S., Mexico and Canada
has risen 168% to $712 billion.
“It may not always be top of mind, but
trade is an important part of the trucking
economy,” he said. “In the post-North American
Free Trade Agreement era, we’ve seen
growth in exports moved by truck outstrip
overall growth of domestic freight over the
past two decades.”
For more on trucking and trade, download
this report highlighting the significant
role trucking plays in moving goods across
borders.
18 INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR 2016 HUNDREDS OF JOBS www.TruckJobSeekers.com