The Base Rate Index, which excludes the impact of Accessorial Charges assessed by carriers increased by a modest .4% in November versus October. Since March of 2011 Base Rates have risen 4.3% in aggregate.

An increase in Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers is the primary reason why Total Costs are increasing a a faster rate than Base Rates.   In November the Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers equated to 20.86% of Base Rates, up from 18.79% in March.

“We are starting to see increases in some sectors that have been hit the hardest during the economic downturn” said Doug Payne, President & COO, Nulogx. “This may be a sign that we are seeing both an increase in demand as well as continued operational and pricing discipline from carriers” continued Payne.

The CGFI is sponsored by Nulogx, a leading Transportation Management Solutions provider, and is used by shippers and carriers to benchmark performance, develop business plans, and secure competitive agreements. It was developed with the assistance of Dr. Alan Saipe. For more information visit the CGFI website: www.cgfi.ca.

The Base Rate Index, which excludes the impact of Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers, has increased for 4 consecutive months including a 1.4% increase in July. However, Base Rates remain 3.6% below the same period in July 2010.

Average Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers declined from 19.3% of Base Rates in June to 19.0% in July.

“It appears there is a trend toward marginal increases in Base Rates,” said Doug Payne, President  & COO, Nulogx. “If carriers continue to manage their capacity and price rationally we may see this trend continue, however that could be offset if there is a slowing economy” continued Payne.

The CGFI Total Freight Costs Index rose by 1% in June when compared to May. The Base Rate Index, which excludes the impact of Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers, increased by 0.8% during the same period.

Notably, average Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers declined for the first time in 8 months from 20.3% of Base Rates to 19.3%.

“We have now seen several consecutive months of increases in freight costs,” said Doug Payne, President & COO, Nulogx. “This is partially due to the effect of increases in Base Rates and the question remains whether this will continue in the future,” continued Payne.

The CGFI Total Freight Cost Index rose by 1.7% in April when compared to March, the largest 1 month gain since July 2010. The Base Rate Index, which excludes the impact of Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers, increased 1.1% during the same period. In addition, average fuel surcharges assessed by carriers increased from 18.8% of Base Rates to 19.9%, and contributed significantly to the rise in freight costs.

Of note is that fuel surcharges increased for the 7th consecutive month, and have reached their highest point since November 2008.

“Lately, increasing fuel prices have been the major factor affecting transportation costs”, commented Doug Payne, President & COO Nulogx. “However in April we saw a notable increase in Truckload Base Rates begin to contribute to this rise in freight costs” continued Payne.

The CGFI Total Freight Cost Index decreased by 1.6% in December compared to November, while the Base Rate Index, which excludes the impact of Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers, decreased 2.5%.  The CGFI is still 2.9% above the April low point and 1.5% above last year’s result for the same period.

Notably, average Fuel Surcharges increased substantially for the third consecutive month from their September low of 13.0% to 15.7% in December.

“In December we continued to see the cooling off of the Domestic Truck Load sector,” comments Doug Payne, President & COO Nulogx.  “However this was offset somewhat by a sustained increase in Fuel Surcharges and a surprisingly strong Domestic LTL result,” adds Payne.

According to Alan Saipe, President of Supply Chain Surveys, “While the price increases seen in the Domestic Truckload sector earlier in the year did not take, we are expecting that carriers will try again for rate increases in early 2011.”

BNN looks at recent trends in Canada’s goods transportation sector with Doug Payne, President & COO of Nulogx, which compiles the Canadian General Freight Index. View Interview Here

Click Here to see Video

Results published today by the Canadian General Freight Index (CGFI) indicate that the cost of ground transportation for Canadian Shippers increased in September for the first time since April; primarily due to increases in fuel prices.

The CGFI September results show that Fuel Surcharges assessed by carriers continued their recent upward trend, increasing eight percent month over month, and 26% since their lowest point last May.  When the impact of rising Fuel Surcharges is removed from the CGFI findings, Base Rates actually declined slightly, dropping an additional point six percent (.6%) from August results.

“Ground freight costs which have trended down for more than a year appear to have bottomed and are starting to increase again,” says Alan Saipe, President, Supply Chain Surveys Inc., and long time analyst and observer of the transportation and logistics industry.  “In September, Less Than Truck Load (LTL) Base Rates reversed their recent trend and increased.  Although Truck Load (TL) rates declined in September, when Base Rates for all categories of ground transportation were combined, and the impact of rising Fuel Surcharges was included, total Ground Transportation costs increased point eight percent (.8%).

The CGFI is sponsored by Nulogx, a leading Transportation Management Solutions provider used by shippers and carriers to benchmark performance, develop business plans, and secure competitive agreements.   It was developed with the assistance of Dr. Alan Saipe. The most recent results are available at the CGFI website:  www.cgfi.ca