The American Trucking Association (ATA) announced Tuesday that its seasonally adjusted truck tonnage index was up 0.5 percent in October after a 1.5 percent September increase. Year-on-year, the October reading is up 5.7 percent from October 2010, and the index in October was 4.4 percent below the index's all-time high in January 2005.
Bob Costello, the ATA's chief economist was bullish on the October results, and said that he expects freight and the economy to increase at a lower pace next year, but that truck tonnage can outpace GDP growth. "Tonnage readings continue to show that the economy is growing and not sliding back into recession. Over the last two months, tonnage is up nearly 2 percent and is just shy of the recent high in January of this year."