Freight margins are razor-thin. The brokerages surviving it built nearshore teams that actually work.
Flatbed rejections hit a record 48.7%, broker numbers stop falling, and diesel jumps 30 cents overnight.
Congress is moving to put driverless 80,000-lb trucks on public roads. Plus: 13,000 California CDLs get cancelled, diesel hits a 32-year record, Florida wants $50K to get your truck back, and more.
Good Friday morning. A trucker's demand for $8K at TQL's HQ grabs attention, while major freight companies such as Schneider, Werner, and CH Robinson report varied Q3 earnings. The Panama Canal's drought continues to challenge shipping. Meanwhile, 35,000 trucking companies have shut down this year. In other news, U.S.-Mexico trade is surging, and Aurora has launched a commercial autonomous trucking route in Texas.
In today's email:
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🐔 WHAT’S COOKIN’ IN FREIGHT
📉 Earnings Per Share Drop Off a Cliff. Major logistics leaders C.H. Robinson, Werner Enterprises, and Schneider National faced turbulent Q3 2023, revealing distinct strategies to combat challenges. While C.H. Robinson's revenue took a 27.8% hit, Wall Street lauded their cost-cutting approach. Werner, impacted by a 1.2% dip in revenue, leaned on the ReedTMS acquisition, boosting truckload logistics by 48%. Schneider grappled with a 19.3% sales decline, signaling 2024 as a transition year. In contrast, Trimble soared with a 35% revenue hike, while Nikola faced massive losses following a truck recall.
💧 Panama Canal Drought Drives West Coast Rebound. The Panama Canal grapples with its worst drought in over seven decades, marking October as the driest since 1950. The Canal's steward, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP), responds by slashing daily ship bookings due to dwindling water levels in Gatun Lake. Larger ships now face offloading challenges, forcing cargo to be transported via rail across the Canal. Experts predict a shift in port market share as U.S. West Coast ports regain losses from the Pandemic.
🚚 35,000 Trucking Companies Shut Down This Year. Despite the U.S. economy growing by 4.9% in Q3 2023, the freight industry hasn't felt the effects of this growth. An astonishing 35,000 trucking companies shut down this year. While consumer spending spikes, truckers see rates continue to drop.
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In our initial story, we highlighted Gabriel Scott Riqueza's proactive steps to get his payment. After getting no response from TQL, he spray-painted his demand on his truck and drove straight to TQL's front door. The situation concluded with police intervention.
Since publishing, multiple new details have come out, including a full interview from Riqueza.
Dooner's Insight: Timothy Dooner posted that despite being paid on October 26th by his factoring company, Riqueza claimed he was unaware due to a miscommunication.
Industry Reaction:
Shannon Guy of GetaCDLjobtoday.com expressed her criticism, highlighting that the system, though imperfect, is doable and pointing out that Gabriel had already been paid two weeks before his protest.
"I will never support a carrier throwing a fit with his equipment... BTW Gabriel had already been paid 2 weeks before he threw his hissy fit with his truck yesterday... Imagine that," she wrote.
Reddit users debated on the trucker's actions and his business credentials, claiming he operates under multiple MCs. Gabriel Scott Riqueza himself responded to the critics, sharing more details about his motives and emphasizing his legitimacy. He says despite being eventually paid, it should have never gotten to this point.
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AROUND THE FREIGHT WEB
📈 U.S.-Mexico Trade Surge. With trade between the U.S. and Mexico booming, Matt Silver notes the gap in northbound versus southbound shipments.
🚨 Truck Accidents Up 71%. The Truck Safety Coalition recently revealed alarming stats: 2021 marked one of the worst years for truck-related fatalities, seeing over 5,700 deaths. New Mexico, Arkansas, and Mississippi saw the worst crashes. Since 2009, truck crash deaths have surged by 71%.
🤖 Autonomous Route in Texas. Aurora Innovation introduces the first commercial autonomous freight route between Dallas and Houston, with plans to become driverless in the future.
🎨 AI-Generated Freight Logos. FreightCaviar and others showcase AI-generated freight logos using Dall-E.
😅 DAT's Outage, Truckstop Gains. TruckStop pokes fun at DAT's platform outage, expressing that a lousy day for DAT is a good day for TruckStop.
FREIGHT CONFERENCES WE'RE ATTENDING
FREIGHT MEME OF THE DAY
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