Summary
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The Cass Freight Index reported that truckload linehaul rates increased 6.9% year-over-year in May 2026, marking the 17th consecutive month of rate gains and the largest increase in nearly four years. The multimodal shipments component dipped just 1.2% y/y, the smallest decline in 18 months, signaling a positive inflection after 40 months of year-over-year declines. With tight inventories, falling tariffs, and a soft U.S. dollar, Cass projects a 1.8% year-over-year volume increase in the second half of 2026. Supply constraints including stricter CDL enforcement, driver exits, and the Supreme Court broker liability ruling continue to support the rate recovery.