Freight data - especially truck movements - remains flat year over year, underscoring its role as a leading indicator of commodity demand and an early signal for aluminum's dependence on final-mile delivery.
Meanwhile, the nation’s largest rail union said they supported the tie-up between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern once Union Pacific agreed to secure union jobs.
Upcoming USTR port fees targeting Chinese-built vessels are set to upend transpacific shipping costs, squeeze capacity, and ripple through U.S. supply chains as early as 2026.
Weakening truck and trailer orders, freight volume declines, and newly expanded Section 232 tariffs on aluminum derivatives signal mounting pressure on margins and investment decisions across the commercial vehicle sector.
Container freight rates keep sliding for a tenth straight week, with looming U.S. tariffs on Chinese vessels and rerouted Gulf shipments reshaping global trade costs.
A short-lived trailer order surge in June belies deeper cracks in the commercial vehicle market, where rising aluminum costs, soft freight demand, and margin compression are colliding.
Class 8 orders drop, trailer backlogs thin, but transportation spending sets a record.
Canada's new trade rules may be retaliation, but it's also starting to look like long-term industrial strategy.
Looking at short line and regional movements as an indirect barometer of what's happening in aluminum rail movements.
The kickoff session of Aluminum Market Update's fireside chat tackled the turbulence facing the freight market in an increasingly protectionist environment.