Triumph—trusted for payments and factoring—now delivers Intelligence. Purpose-built to power broker transactions from quote to cash, the Triumph Network equips brokers with insights to accelerate growth and transact confidently.
🍳What's Cookin' In Freight
Image Source: Descartes
🚢 Tariff Jitters Slow U.S. Container Imports. U.S. container imports fell 7.5% YoY in October, as shippers pulled back amid tariff uncertainty and soft demand. Descartes reported 2.3M TEUs handled, marking only the second October decline in a decade. Imports from China rose 5.4% MoM but remained down 16.3% YoY, as categories like furniture (-13.6%) and toys (-30.4%) weakened. Imports from India dropped 19%. Analysts expect volumes to slide below 2 million TEUs through year-end, with Hackett Associates warning that “a larger decline” could follow in early 2026.
đźš› $4.9M Earmark Boosts NC Trucker Training. A deal to end the 40-day government shutdown includes $4.9 million for Southeastern Community College in North Carolina to expand its truck driver training program, making it one of the largest allocations of its kind. Secured by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), the funding ranks 9th among 360 earmarks in a $530 million agriculture and rural development bill. If approved by the House, the investment could fund simulators, testing sites, and new training fleets.
❄️ Blizzard Paralyzes Midwest; What’s the Fallout? An early-season blizzard blanketed the Midwest, disrupting freight lanes and forcing road closures from Chicago to Detroit. The National Weather Service reported 4–8 inches of lake-effect snow along Lakes Michigan and Erie, while freezing temperatures stretched as far south as the Gulf Coast. WeatherOptics CEO Scott Pecoriello said their AI Nowcast System showed “Road Index Scores of 7+ along I-90 and I-94,” causing major shipping delays. “Conditions changed in minutes,” Pecoriello noted. WeatherOptics will host a Winter Weather Readiness Webinarat 11 AM ET today.
The D.C. Circuit Court just hit pause on FMCSA’s emergency rule restricting non-domiciled CDLs, halting enforcement while judges review whether the agency overstepped by skipping normal rulemaking.
For now, nearly 200,000 drivers, including DACA recipients, asylum seekers, and refugees, can keep operating under pre-September rules.
In a late-Monday order (Nov. 10), a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued an administrative stay on FMCSA’s September 29 rule, which had abruptly limited CDL eligibility for non-citizens.
The temporary stay means:
States can resume issuing and renewing non-domiciled CDLs.
FMCSA cannot enforce the new restrictions until the court rules further.
The decision isn’t a final judgment—just a procedural pause to let judges review both sides’ arguments.
Plaintiff Jorge Rivera Lujan, a long-time CDL holder and DACA recipient, said he couldn’t renew his license after the rule took effect, putting his business and livelihood at risk.
FMCSA and the DOJ, however, claim the move was justified on public-safety grounds, citing fatal crashes involving non-domiciled drivers.
Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association President Todd Spencer called the court pause "a setback on procedural grounds, not on policy substance."
"For too long, loopholes in this program have allowed unqualified drivers onto our highways," Spencer said. "The rule itself is sound."
Matthew Leffler, The Armchair Attorney says he doesn't "suspect the non-domicile CDL rule goes anywhere even if it is paused during this hearing process..." Image Source: @armchairatty/YouTube
Attorney Matthew Leffler predicted that the interim rule will likely survive the court challenge and eventually be implemented.
Though he seemed to question the FMCSA's priorities, saying, "I only hope that someday they care as much about tire tread depth as they do about non-domicile CDL and English language proficiency."
Transparency Battle Over ELP Rule
The redacted document given to the public leaves out how exactly proficiency would be tested. Image Source: CDL Life
At the same time, CVSA is calling on FMCSA to release an unredacted version of its English Language Proficiency (ELP) enforcement memo, the very document inspectors use to judge whether drivers can "respond sufficiently to official inquiries" in English.
A redacted version, obtained earlier this year, outlines a two-step test involving:
A driver interview conducted in English.
Highway traffic-sign recognition assessment.
The CVSA argues that withholding details from industry stakeholders only fuels confusion.
"The bar against which compliance will be measured should not be withheld from the motor carrier industry," CVSA wrote. "Releasing it would improve transparency and compliance."
Between FMCSA’s stalled non-domiciled rule and calls for transparency on ELP enforcement, regulators are under growing scrutiny for how they define and enforce driver eligibility.
Rogue carriers, compromised inboxes, and unauthorized MC ownership changes continue to escalate freight fraud across the freight industry.
In Q3 alone, Highway blocked over 600,000 fraudulent emails, 62,000 spoofed calls, and nearly 3,000 identity-related alerts across broker networks. The latest Freight Fraud Index reveals where fraud is evolving fastest and how brokers can stay ahead.
🚨 Apex ICE Raid. Last week’s Bensenville, Illinois, ICE operation targeted Apex Logistics; federal agents detained multiple workers amid an ongoing investigation into immigration and employment compliance violations.
đźš› Einride Eyes SPAC Debut. Swedish autonomous-truck maker Einride plans to go public via a SPAC deal, aiming to accelerate its global rollout of electric and self-driving freight trucks
đźšš Aifleet Downsizing. Austin-based Aifleet is cutting its truck fleet to weather the freight recession, prioritizing core customers and cash flow while maintaining its tech-enabled driver operations model.
🚆 Truck Sabotage Attempt. Scott Heffner, 34, was arrested after parking stolen semi trucks on train tracks in an attempt to derail a freight train, according to local police reports.
🛠️ Steel Theft Ring. Five suspects were arrested in Texas for using “multiple semi trucks with flatbed trailers” to steal and haul away loads of steel rods to a location in Odessa, TX.
💰 Toll Hike Blow. Illinois carrier owners called the state’s 30% truck toll hike “a miserable blow,” warning it will squeeze small fleets already struggling with insurance, fuel, and rate pressure.
🌏 TuSimple’s Movement. Benjamin Gordon warned that TuSimple’s move to Beijing after delisting from Nasdaq shows “predatory Chinese investment siphoning U.S. innovation,” as Congressman John Moolenaar described it.
🎣 THE FREIGHT CAVIAR CORNER
FreightCaviar Podcast: We sat down with Highway’s Demi Ramon & Michael Caney to unpack Q3 freight fraud trends and what brokers need to know. Episode up now on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
Freightjobs.co. Now Hiring:Ship Smart Solutions Inc. is looking for a Freight Broker with Existing Customers in Montgomery, IL. Apply here.
Shipper CRM: A FreightCaviar product built for brokers to find, track, and win shipper freight. Click here to learn more.
FreightCaviar Forum: We launched a forum for brokers, carriers, and freight tech pros to connect, share insights, and trade industry intel.
I’m Adriana, a writer and editor at FreightCaviar. I’ve covered everything from freight tech to industry lawsuits and market shifts, helping scale us to almost 14K subscribers. My goal: to make logistics stories digestible, clear, and fun to read.
Hello! I'm Jerome FreightCaviar! I’m into the politics of freight and the impact it will have worldwide. I'm always eager to learn more. Follow me on X @JeromeFreightC
Keep up with the freight broker world in 5 minutes.
Join over 14K+ subscribers to get the latest freight news and entertainment directly in your inbox for free. Subscribe & be sure to check your inbox to confirm (and your spam folder just in case).
Adriana Pulley
