The March LMI reads like 2022 with prices at a 4-year high. Plus: warehouse arson in California, Mexico's trucker strike enters day three, and broker margins are still underwater.
Deployment expands the GoodShip platform beyond shippers to support carriers, brokers, and other logistics service providers
If you're based in the Chattanooga metro area, we invite you to come to the launch of our print magazine & 'Freight Alley' film launch party.
Plus, Apollo is warning of big job cuts in trucking and retail, the CVSA just voted to sideline truckers who canât speak English fluently, a new Kearney report shows reshoring is stalling, and more.
Happy Cinco de Mayo. Today's feature dives into the growing outrage over fraudulent trucking companies using fake addresses, and what many say is FMCSAâs failure to act.
Plus:
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đ WHATâS COOKINâ IN FREIGHT
đ Apollo Warns of Trucking and Retail Layoffs; Tariff-Driven Slowdown. Apollo Global Management forecasts a severe U.S. recession, warning of mass layoffs in trucking and retail as tariffs slash imports and freight volumes. With imports driving ~20% of U.S. trucking, Apollo expects domestic freight activity to sharply decline by mid-May, forcing layoffs. Retailers face inventory shortages, falling consumer confidence, and rising inflation, likely triggering job cuts by June. FreightWaves has already tracked over 1,800 layoffs across southeastern freight and supply-chain firms, including C&S Wholesale, Adient, Saks Global, and Grede. Apollo warns the economy risks stagflation, urging companies to prepare for prolonged challenges.
đ CVSA Votes to Sideline Truck Drivers Lacking English Proficiency. The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) board has voted to make English proficiency violations an out-of-service condition for truck drivers, effective June 25, following President Trumpâs executive order. CVSA stated, âA commercial motor vehicle inspector may place a driver out of service if they cannot demonstrate proficiency in reading and speaking English.â Insurance experts estimate up to 10% of U.S. CDL drivers could be affected, threatening trucking capacity. CVSA added it will petition the FMCSA to âharmonize the commercial driverâs license English language requirementsâ to ensure regulatory consistency across the trucking industry.
đŚ Kearney: U.S. Reshoring Stalls. Reshoring, the move to bring manufacturing back to the U.S., cooled down in 2024 after two strong years. Kearneyâs 2025 Reshoring Index shows imports from low-cost Asian countries rose 10%, while U.S. output grew just 1%, dragging the Reshoring Index into negative territory. âThis yearâs report found the Reshoring Index turning back to negative territory,â said Kearney Partner Patrick Van den Bossche, pointing to a disconnect between reshoring plans and execution. Mexico remains the top U.S. trade partner, but infrastructure issues and rising labor costs are starting to slow momentum. Itâs important to note this report was likely finalized before Trumpâs new tariffs were announced. Since then, weâve seen a clear uptick in reshoring announcements from both U.S. and foreign manufacturers looking to move production stateside. CEO interest in reshoring rose 15%, with many citing geopolitical risk as a key driver. Reshoring isnât dead - itâs in a holding pattern. And next yearâs numbers could look very different.
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Freight X is fuming. A recent investigative report from ABC-affiliate WFAA news reveals just how rampant fraudulent addresses are in trucking and how little the FMCSA appears to be doing about it.
From one shady California building with nearly 700 carriers tied to it â 500 of them using the same sketchy email (yes, really: WTFMCSA@aol.com) â to a Dallas-area mailbox facility that houses 20 âphantomâ carriers, the loopholes are both obvious and absurd.
Adriana Pulley
Dale Prax, owner of Freight Validate, has been tracking trucking identity fraud for years. He flagged the Signal Hill, CA address two years ago.
âIf we all know about it and we reported it, why is something not being done?â â Dale Prax, Freight Validate
These so-called companies list PO boxes, virtual addresses, and mail drops as their âbusiness locations,â shielding them from oversight. In one instance, 539 West Commerce Street in Texas was home to 20 trucking companies, but the building is a virtual mailbox hub.
âThey would not be working here physically,â a clerk at the address confirmed.
Despite FMCSA guidelines that prohibit such addresses, the agency claimed the California case involved a "legitimate business address for a motor carrier consultant" â a response thatâs only stoking more skepticism.
X (formerly Twitter) lit up this weekend with brokers, truckers, and safety advocates venting their frustration:
The message is clear: the people following the rules feel punished, while fraudsters operate with impunity.
Jerome Washington
This isnât an isolated story. The recent CarrierOK exposĂŠ on Tony Kirikâs web of âchameleon carriersâ showed a repeatable fraud playbook: shell companies, shared emails, duplicate phone numbers, and bogus addresses â all designed to game FMCSAâs oversight gaps.
And it's still happening.
FMCSA officials say theyâre rolling out facial recognition to verify new carrier registrations. But that doesnât fix the core problem, Prax explains:
âWe donât need to know whoâs behind the webcam.
We need to know whoâs behind the operation.â
â Dale Prax
Some owner-operators living out of their trucks may be using these P.O. boxes for business. But for fraudsters actually moving trucks, they will be dodging inspections, ignoring safety protocols, and disappearing after incidents.
âWhen youâre driving with your kids and thereâs a truck next to you that maybe got its authority illegally, are you really safe?â â WFAA Investigation
However, many of these fake addresses are linked to scammers or double-brokers who never intended to carry freight.
Don't miss the HappyRobot x FreightCaviar webinar today where we talk AI & how business users can leverage insights + execute tasks from HappyRobot's Bridge.
We've also heard rumors that Sergey will make a surprise guest appearance!?
đ AROUND THE FREIGHT WEB
đ§ A Secret Weapon? The trade war between China and the U.S. has been heating up. With China putting a limit on minerals that can be exported to the U.S., this video explores a wildcard that could remedy this situation: $TMC underwater mining.
đŚ¸ââď¸ Trucker Rescues Driver. Newly licensed trucker Charles Vockers pulled a man from a burning car wedged beneath his trailer, earning praise for his quick, lifesaving action captured on video.
âď¸ Freightmate Dismissed? Freightmate AI is seeking dismissal of Flexportâs copyright lawsuit, arguing that the complaint fails to establish any direct involvement by the company in the alleged actions of former Flexport employees who are now associated with Freightmate.
đ Windroseâs Launch. Windrose is preparing for its July launch of U.S. truck assembly operations, according to CEO Wen Han. Windrose also plan to pick the location of a second assembly plant in the U.S. by the Fourth of July.
𧝠Kimberly-Clark Investment. Kimberly-Clark announced plans to invest over $2 billion over the next five years in its U.S. operations. The investment includes opening a manufacturing facility in Warren, Ohio, and an automated distribution center in Beech Island, South Carolina.
âď¸ JFK Cargo Center. A new $270 million cargo center at JFK Airport aims to reduce truck congestion, lower emissions, create good-paying jobs, and improve freight efficiency at one of Americaâs busiest hubs, according to Port Authority Chairman Kevin OâToole.
đŁ THE FREIGHT CAVIAR CORNER
FREIGHT HUMOR
The March LMI reads like 2022 with prices at a 4-year high. Plus: warehouse arson in California, Mexico's trucker strike enters day three, and broker margins are still underwater.
âI used to hate a freight broker. All they're trying to do is take my money. That was the attitude⌠until you realize that if there's a load of freight, whether itâs intermodal, brokerage, or assets, the load is going to go the way itâs supposed to go. You can fight it, but youâll go broke.â
The contract cushion brokers relied on is nearly gone. Here's what that means for your margins. Plus: FMCSA is pulling ELDs fast, Hormuz cracks open - barely, $821k ghost load scheme, and more.
Plus: Brokers return, Hormuz spikes rates, LTL stays stuck in a tough year, and more.
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