We’ve been in a down cycle since 2022. That’s no secret. But what’s different now is how many signals left an impression that we were climbing out only to get blindsided by a downturn again.
Back in January, we saw a little life. Spot rates pushed upward, volumes ticked up, and there was hope that just maybe we were on the upswing. Fast forward to April and reality’s hit like a ton of bricks.
Tariffs are putting pressure on imports; the NASDAQ just had its worst single-day performance since May 2020; consumer sentiment is shaky. And right now, all of that is making its way into the freight market in the form of falling rates, declining demand, and minimal leverage for carriers.
