Trucking & Rail Oct 19, 2026 · 7 min read
C.H. Robinson’s $604m verdict stands, and the bill is now over $700m. A Dallas County judge has upheld July’s $604,025,000 jury verdict against C.H. Robinson over a 2021 crash that killed three people, FreightWaves reports. About $107m of interest takes the total past $700m. Our view: the real damage is the jury’s finding that the driver was under the broker’s control. The company says it “does not employ drivers” and said in July it would appeal. Its insurance covers $155m per occurrence, its filing shows. Anyone who books trucks should expect tougher carrier checks and contract terms. Our call: C.H. Robinson will not settle before an appeals court rules.
Trucking & Rail Oct 18, 2026 · 7 min read
Judge upholds $604m verdict against C.H. Robinson; with interest it tops $700m. On Friday a Dallas County judge upheld a jury’s USD 604m verdict against C.H. Robinson over a 2021 crash that killed three people, FreightWaves reports. About USD 107m of pre-judgment interest takes the total past USD 700m. Our view: this is the bill for the Supreme Court’s May ruling that brokers can be sued for picking unsafe carriers. CHR says it “does not employ drivers”; the jury found the driver was working under its control. Anyone who books trucks for clients carries a version of this risk. Our call: no settlement before year-end. CHR will push the appeal on its 28 October earnings call.
Trucking & Rail Oct 18, 2026 · 7 min read
Maersk lifts its US inland fuel surcharge 54% to $215 from 1 November. Maersk will raise its US inland fuel surcharge from $140 to $215 per container on 1 November, Container News reports. It applies when Maersk trucks the box to or from your door under its own bill of lading. In our view, this is a lagging bill: weekly diesel has fallen three weeks in a row, to $6.18 a gallon (EIA, via Overdrive), but the 13-week average Maersk uses still rose. Carrier-haulage door moves will cost more in November even as pump prices ease. Our call: $215 will still be in force on 31 December.
Trucking & Rail Oct 17, 2026 · 7 min read
A judge kept C.H. Robinson’s $604m verdict. With interest, it is over $700m. On 16 October a Dallas County judge upheld the full $604,025,000 jury verdict against C.H. Robinson over a 2021 crash that killed three people, FreightWaves reported. TD Cowen estimates about $107m of interest on top. Our view: the carrier’s “Satisfactory” safety rating is no longer a shield for a broker. Since May, a Supreme Court ruling has let state negligent-hiring claims against brokers go ahead. Any forwarder that books US trucks now carries this risk. Our call: C.H. Robinson appeals, and does not settle before mid-2027.
Trucking & Rail Oct 17, 2026 · 7 min read
J.B. Hunt’s 20% revenue jump is half diesel. The driver bill is the story. J.B. Hunt grew Q3 revenue 20% to $3.68bn. Fuel surcharges explain close to half the rise: $670.8m, up from $385.6m. Excluding fuel, intermodal revenue per load rose just 2%. In our view, cost is the number to watch. Extra costs topped $50m, driven by diesel, driver hiring and cargo claims. The CEO says driver pressure “typically yields a much better pricing environment for the next bid season”, the yearly contract tender. Our call: US domestic contract rates rise mid-single digits in bids closing by end of Q1 2027.
Trucking & Rail Oct 16, 2026 · 7 min read
J.B. Hunt’s driver costs are your 2027 inland rate. J.B. Hunt moved 8% more intermodal loads in Q3, but costs cut operating income by over $50 million versus Q2. Our view: that bill gets passed on in 2027. CFO Brad Delco said costs “impacted operating income by over $50 million versus the second quarter of this year.” CEO Shelley Simpson said driver pressure “typically yields a much better pricing environment for the next” bid cycle. This year it won only low-single-digit intermodal contract rises. Forwarders quoting US door moves for 2027 should build in more. Our call: 2027 intermodal contract increases land in mid-single digits, set by end of Q1.
Trucking & Rail Oct 15, 2026 · 7 min read
J.B. Hunt wants bigger rail rate rises, and US inland costs follow. J.B. Hunt’s intermodal revenue per load rose just 2% in Q3 once fuel is stripped out (FreightWaves). Our view: that is about to change. Management told analysts on 15 October that it is “asking for larger rate increases” in 2027 bids. Its sales chief put the truck-to-rail price gap at “more than double” the usual 15% or so. Trucking is tight: J.B. Hunt’s truckload revenue per load rose 29% excluding fuel. Houston dray (port trucking) rates are up 34% year on year (Drayrates, via The Loadstar). Our call: forwarders will see mid-single-digit intermodal contract rises in Q1 2027 awards.
Trucking & Rail Oct 15, 2026 · 7 min read
Diesel is $2.51 a gallon dearer than a year ago, and Russian barrels won’t fix that. US on-highway diesel averaged $6.179 a gallon this week, up $2.514 on a year ago, per EIA data reported by FleetOwner. Our view: Washington’s fuel moves are aimed at pump prices before the 3 November midterms, not at what shippers pay. A Russian deal for over 300,000 tons of diesel is “such a tiny amount,” said DAT’s Dean Croke. Diesel futures jumped 5% on 14 October. Fuel surcharges track the weekly EIA number, so expect no relief in quotes. Our call: the EIA average stays above $6.00 every week through end of November.
Trucking & Rail Oct 14, 2026 · 7 min read
US truck rates barely moved after quarter-end. Diesel is still $6.18. The US dry van spot rate rose 3 cents to $3.12 a mile in DAT’s 4–10 October report, even as load posts fell 18%. Diesel averaged $6.179 a gallon on 12 October, the EIA says, $2.51 above a year ago. Our view: this is not a quarter-end blip. DAT’s Dean Croke says “Linehaul rates are about a third above last year,” and truck posts are more than 20% below a year ago. US inland legs will stay expensive. Our call: the DAT van rate stays above $3.00 a mile through mid-November.
Trucking & Rail Oct 13, 2026 · 7 min read
Cross-border truck capacity is tight because drivers are missing, not because freight is busy. TRAFFIX’s October cross-border index reads 57 for Canada and 54 for Mexico. Anything above 50 means capacity is tight. Our view: this squeeze comes from missing drivers and rules, not from strong demand, so it won’t ease quickly. US authorities have reportedly withdrawn about 25,000 Mexican drivers’ visas, according to CANACAR, Mexico’s trucking chamber. On some Canada corridors, rates are up 25% to 35% in four to six weeks. Expect carriers to hand back more contract loads. Our call: neither index drops below 50 before the end of Q1 2027.
Trucking & Rail Oct 12, 2026 · 8 min read
Diesel is off its peak, but US trucking still costs about 40 cents a mile more in fuel than last year. US diesel averaged $6.199 a gallon in the week of 5 October. That is 18.3 cents lower than the week before, but $2.49 above a year ago (EIA). Our view: this is a breather, not relief. Diesel set a record of $6.529 on 21 September. DAT says van spot rates rose to $3.13 a mile at quarter-end. J.B. Hunt has already warned that fuel and driver costs hit its third quarter. It reports on Thursday. Our call: diesel stays above $5.50 on EIA’s weekly series through the end of 2026.
Trucking & Rail Oct 11, 2026 · 8 min read
A Russian diesel waiver will not fix US truck costs. On Sunday 11 October, Republican Senator Thom Tillis said Trump’s Russian diesel deal may break the law, per Reuters via gCaptain. The US Treasury licence pausing sanctions on Russian diesel runs to April 2027, AP reports. Our view: it won’t bring truck costs down quickly. EIA put US diesel at $6.199 a gallon on 5 October, $2.488 above a year ago. The September Logistics Managers’ Index scored transport capacity at 34.4, deep in contraction. J.B. Hunt reports on 15 October. Our call: US diesel stays above $5.50 through end-November, and fuel surcharges stay high.
Trucking & Rail Oct 10, 2026 · 9 min read
US truck spot rates hit $3.13 a mile and Maersk sets a 20% UK inland fuel surcharge. The DAT van spot rate rose 11 cents to $3.13 a mile in the week to 3 October, according to TheTrucker.com. In Britain, Maersk lifts its inland emergency fuel surcharge for the UK and Ireland to 20% from 12 October, Marine Insight reports. Our view: the inland leg is now where landed-cost surprises come from. US diesel is over 70% above a year ago, Euronews reports. Van rates before fuel are up 34% on the year, and fuel costs are pushing small carriers out, DAT says. Our call: US van spot rates stay above $3 a mile through November.