Blog

The content below is for intermodal freight brokers interested in utilizing the DrayNow spot market. For brokers interested in securing intermodal drayage service for their contracted lanes, please feel free to reach out to us via contact form.

For a look at last month’s data on intermodal spot rates, click the link here.

Intermodal spot rates on the DrayNow platform were down across all key markets in November. This is the first time all year that the cost to move intermodal freight decreased in all three markets, signaling an overall downward trend. Chicago average spot rates were down a staggering 27%, down 14% in Atlanta and down 5% in the Los Angeles market.

The biggest news out of the spot rate data for November is the 27% drop in spot rates for the Chicago market. There were many high-mileage spot moves in November to partially account for this decrease in the rate per mile, but freight was still moving at a lower rate per mile than the prior month. This is the also the lowest average spot rate per mile recorded this year. When compared to November 2022, spot rates last month were 40% lower.

The cost to move intermodal freight in Los Angeles decreased 5% in November. Spot rates in Los Angeles have been slipping ever since a huge jump in September, but are still relatively above average when looking at the rest of the year. Compared to the same time last year, spot rates in LA are down 4%.

Average spot rates also dropped in the Atlanta market in November, falling 14% compared to October. This is the second lowest point spot rates have gone in Atlanta this year after hitting a record high for the year just last month. Even though the cost to move intermodal freight in Atlanta is lower for this month, it’s actually back to being higher than Chicago. The average spot rate per mile is also down 21% in November compared to the same time period in 2022.

Spot rates in the key domestic intermodal markets appear to be bucking the trend that’s usually set in peak season: higher rates as capacity tightens through the holidays. Just last month, the Atlanta and Chicago markets on the DrayNow platform saw their highest costs to move intermodal spot freight this year. Could peak season spot rates have already peaked last month? The answer to that will come as more data arrives through the end of the year.