Weekly discussion and analysis on the trends in the intermodal spot rate market.
The InTek intermodal spot rate index decreased 0.6% from the prior week.
For the week of November 30, 2021, domestic intermodal spot rate index:
- Down 0.6% from prior week.
- Up 3.3% from 90 days ago.
- Up 11.8% from prior year.
YTD-Year to Date Intermodal Volume by Region and Equipment
North American Intermodal
- 5.4%
Intermodal Volume by Region
- United States: 6.4%
- Canada: 2.7%
- Mexico: 0.1%
Intermodal Volume by Equipment Type
- Container: 4.0%
- Trailer: 5.5%
US intermodal originations moved up a bit this week, although the year-over-year comparisons continue to decline in all segments. This trend started in April and we are forecasting year-over-year volumes will be down 8% to 10%.
Comparison of Truckload to Intermodal Spot Rate
The national truckload spot rate increased 3.3% last week, as reported by the DAT Trendline Report.
Domestic 53' intermodal spot rates are down 0.4% (on a weighted average mileage basis) from the prior week.
Using the same indexes on a year-over-year basis, truckload is up 19.9% and domestic intermodal is up 12.8%.
For a full review of the US Intermodal Savings Against Truckload we point you to a tremendous piece of research the Journal of Commerce publishes quarterly.
Diesel Fuel Comments:
The EIA (U.S. Energy Information Administration) reported average diesel fuel price of $3.720 per gallon this week, which is down $0.004 from prior week.
The diesel price per gallon is up $1.218 or 48.7% from the same period last year.
The EIA's November 2021 diesel price average price projection is $3.28 per gallon for calendar year.
EIA's most recent 2021 projection for oil & diesel prices:
- WTI - $69.02
- Brent - $71.59
The full spreadsheet of the historical weekly price moves of diesel full can be found at https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/gasdiesel/.
For those working on 2022 budgets, please note the following EIA forecasts:
- Diesel: $3.23
- WTI: $68.28
- Brent: $71.91
Intermodal Spot Rate Trend Graphs
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53' Domestic Intermodal Spot Rate per Mile (2014 - 2021)
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53' Domestic Intermodal Price Index & Diesel Fuel Prices
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Variance to January 1, 2013 Baseline
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Rolling 52 Year-over-Year Comparison - 53' Domestic Intermodal and Diesel Fuel Prices
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Rolling 52 Year-over-Year % Change - 53' Domestic Intermodal and Diesel Fuel Prices
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53' Domestic Intermodal and Diesel Prices Quarter-Over-Quarter Comparison
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53' Domestic Intermodal Spot Rate per Weighted Average Mile and Total Volume
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53' Domestic Intermodal Spot Rate Rolling 4-Week Year-Over-Year Comparison
For more on 53' domestic intermodal, truckload , cross-border and managed transportation services, please sign-up for our weekly blogs and visit the InTek Freight and Logistics website.
