Logistic professionals report lowest freight demand in six months

Tech.co’s latest survey has revealed a decline in freight demand during the sector’s peak shipping season (August–October), signaling early signs of a potential “carrier purge”.

Typically, the holidays bring a natural rise in demand, but this year the number of logistics professionals reporting a high level of demand fell from 31% in August to 26% in October.

This marks the lowest point that high-level demand has reached, down from 41% in April, since Tech.co began tracking carriers’ perceptions of freight availability.

More carriers are reporting low availability

Meanwhile, according to the data, the percentage of industry professionals who reported low-level demand rose to 17% in the last six months.

Ongoing challenges

The trucking industry continues to face harsh market conditions and ongoing regulatory policies that impact the level of demand, as the industry goes into its longest ever downturn of 3 years, as noted by Trucknews.

The data shows a decline in business activity during the sector’s busiest season, suggesting that established seasonal patterns in freight demand may be shifting.

Tech.co’s Editor Jack Turner says:

“Our latest research should set alarm bells ringing for the logistics industry, as one of its traditionally busiest periods, the holiday season, looks under threat. High-level demand is in steep decline and shows no sign of abating. While we did see a momentary large uptick in activity earlier in the year, this was due to companies front-loading to get ahead of incoming tariffs. It's no surprise that 20% of respondents we spoke to in the industry told us that "managing financial pressure" was their top priority.”