Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/443069
COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | JANUARY 2015 33 C O V E R S T O R Y : 2 0 1 5 E C O N O M I C O U T L O O K level ever and remained strong in November, but FTR notes that most order activity is replace- ment rather than additional capacity as carriers chase better fuel economy, lower maintenance costs and improved driver recruiting. Higher Class 8 truck order activity "will continue into next year, but won't last forever," says Broughton, citing the strong correlation between tonnage and truck orders. "[The industry] has some work to do to bring the average age of fleets down. Coming out of the recession, large fleets are going from five-year to four-year trade cycles, and now four-year to three-year trade cycles." Despite the uniform optimism from analysts and favorable indicators, carrier sentiment about prospects for 2015 swings wildly, according to open-ended responses to Commercial Carrier Journal's 2015 Economic Outlook survey. "We feel that there is still uncertainty in the economy moving forward," said one respondent for a large for-hire carrier. "Capacity has not tightened as expected, drivers are still very hard to come by, and the political environment changes from day to day. Overall, we feel 2015 should be better than 2014, but we are cautiously optimistic." Here is a look at the top four concerns for carriers heading into 2015 based on 411 respondents to the CCJ 2015 Eco- nomic Outlook survey. 4: FREIGHT PRICING (6.3 PERCENT) Falling from the #2 spot in last year's outlook survey, freight pricing still remains a leading concern for carriers heading into 2015. "Rates are finally starting to become realistic, and shippers are now becoming willing to pay for the service excellence they demand and expect," said a survey respondent for a large for-hire carrier. But for smaller fleets, getting increas- es in freight rates is tougher. "With all the brokers who get the majority of the freight and charging a one-way rate, it's hard to compete," said a survey respon- dent for a small for-hire fleet. "We have brokers calling us for rates, only to have them undercut us and put it on a board for a one-way trucker to haul at a margin of the rate." *based on for-hire respondents only WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST CONCERN? Sentiment among for-hire fleets changed little year-over-year, with regulation worries creeping up to number 2 in 2015. WHAT COMPANY EXPENSE ITEM WILL INCREASE THE MOST? More fleets think healthcare costs and driver pay will increase dramatically this year.