New quarterly analysis of national and regional freight activity is
trending up
MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 19, 2017--
U.S. Bank has launched a new barometer for assessing the nation’s
shipping industry. The U.S.
Bank Freight Payment Index™ measures quantitative changes in
shipment and spend activity, based on data from transactions processed
through U.S.
Bank Freight Payment. These transactions are made on behalf of
clients across a range of industries, including automotive,
manufacturing, food and retail. Published quarterly, the U.S. Bank
Freight Payment Index includes regional and national breakdowns along
with expert commentary from Bob Costello, chief economist for the
American Trucking Associations (ATA).
Highlights and analysis of the U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index for the
third quarter include:
-
An 8.3 percent jump in the U.S. Bank National Spend Index, the largest
quarterly gain since the final quarter in 2014, reflects a tighter
truck market, in part from increased vehicle demand in the aftermath
of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
-
The U.S. Bank National Shipment Index increased 3.3 percent, which was
slower than the 5.8 percent surge in the second quarter, but still
solid, considering the impacts from the hurricanes.
-
One of the most important developments for the transportation sector
has been the acceleration in factory output as the U.S. dollar
retreated from high levels and businesses began reinvesting in capital
equipment.
A unique feature of the index is that it breaks the data down into five
U.S. regions – West, Southwest, Midwest, Southeast and Northeast --
based on the state of origin for a shipment. “Freight shipments are
generally not uniform across the country,” said Costello. “That’s what
makes the U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index so useful. It is regional and
gives a good snapshot into the differences in economic climate from one
end of the country to the other.”
Regional highlights and analysis for the third quarter include:
-
The Northeast region saw the biggest shipment index gain, at 10
percent. The gain was helped along by better manufacturing activity
and slightly higher housing starts compared to Q2.
-
Shipments in the Southeast inched up a mere 0.1 percent, as Hurricane
Irma disrupted the supply chain. At the same time, spend volume jumped
nearly 5 percent as truck capacity undoubtedly tightened.
-
The Midwest led the pack in overall spend, jumping 13.3 percent to a
record high. The region was assisted by a rebound in general
manufacturing activity.
“With U.S. Bank and its customers increasingly relying on big data to
discover opportunities and make decisions, leveraging our robust data to
assist our clients with these insights made a lot of sense,” said U.S.
Bank Global Transportation General Manager John Hardin. “The relative
changes in the U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index indicate trends in the
transportation industry and the overall economy, which can be helpful to
customers in benchmarking their performance.”
Though the U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index is new, its aggregated data
goes back to 2010, allowing readers a sense of trend lines over time.
Access to the full October quarterly report is available online at
this link.
A pioneer in automated freight audit and payment for 20 years, U.S. Bank
Freight Payment processes around $23 billion in global freight payments
annually for some of the world’s largest corporations and government
agencies. Through its comprehensive online solution, organizations can
streamline and automate their freight audit and payment processes while
obtaining the business intelligence needed to maintain a competitive
supply chain. U.S. Bank Freight Payment combines transportation,
logistics and supply chain expertise with the backing of one of the
world’s leading payment providers and the security of one of the world’s
most respected financial institutions.
©2017 U.S. Bank
About U.S. Bank(www.usbank.com)
Minneapolis-based
U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB), with $459 billion in assets as of September
30, 2017, is the parent company of U.S. Bank National Association, the
fifth largest commercial bank in the United States. The Company operates
3,072 banking offices in 25 states and 4,801 ATMs and provides a
comprehensive line of banking, investment, mortgage, trust and payment
services products to consumers, businesses and institutions.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171019006068/en/
Source: U.S. Bank
Bill Brady | U.S. Bank Corporate Communications
612-303-0731(o)
| 651-728-2248 (m)
bill.brady@usbank.com
or
Deborah
Harris | William Mills Agency
678-781-7220 | deborah@williammills.com