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📊 Daily Market Intelligence Report

Friday, March 13, 2026

7:00 AM CST


📊 Top-Line Summary

The spot market is accelerating into the weekend with total available loads climbing 2.0% to 182,150 and the national average rate pushing to $2.37/mile. This upward momentum is heavily influenced by a severe $4.892/gallon national diesel average, which continues to force carriers to reject low-yield freight and demand substantial fuel premiums. Transcontinental routing is currently facing massive disruptions as 80 mph crosswinds batter the Rockies and a looming blizzard threatens the Midwest, effectively paralyzing the I-80 and I-90 corridors. Meanwhile, flatbed and heavy haul sectors continue their absolute dominance of the spot market, absorbing over 120,000 combined loads as industrial and infrastructure projects compete fiercely for specialized equipment.

Daily market overview

⛽ Diesel Price Analysis

Price Trend Over Time

Diesel Price Trend Chart

AAA Historical Price Comparison

AAA Historical Price Comparison Chart

🌦️ Weather & Seasonal Intelligence

Current Major Weather Events:

⛈️ Weather Impact Cascade

💰 Financial Market Indicators

📰 Impactful News Analysis

  1. Class 8 Truck Orders Surge, Signaling Long-Term Capacity Shifts 🔗:
    A massive 156% year-over-year jump in Class 8 orders indicates large, well-capitalized fleets are preparing for a market recovery in 2026. For brokers, this suggests a widening gap between mega-fleets expanding their footprint and small carriers being squeezed out by $4.89+ diesel. Brokers should focus on building relationships with mid-sized fleets that have new equipment arriving, as they will be hungry for consistent freight to service their new debt.
  2. Diesel Crisis Hits Agricultural Sector, Threatening Reefer Margins 🔗:
    The record weekly surge in diesel prices is devastating cattle and agricultural producers, driving up transportation costs across the food supply chain. For freight brokers, this means agricultural shippers will be hyper-sensitive to rates, while reefer carriers will absolutely refuse to move without heavy fuel compensation. Expect intense rate negotiations on outbound rural lanes and prepare to educate customers on the reality of carrier operating costs.
  3. Ocean Carriers Implement Emergency Fuel Surcharges on Key Routes 🔗:
    Major maritime operators like MSC are slapping emergency fuel surcharges on global trade routes due to the ongoing energy crisis. This directly impacts domestic brokers by forcing shippers to absorb higher international costs, which often leads them to seek cheaper domestic drayage and transloading options. Brokers with strong port-drayage networks can capitalize on this by offering agile, spot-market transload solutions for shippers trying to bypass congested, expensive traditional routing.
  4. Macro Inflation Risks Rise Alongside Diesel Spikes 🔗:
    Mainstream economic indicators are flashing warning signs that the sustained $4.89+ diesel average will reignite broader inflation. For brokers, this means shippers' transportation budgets will be under extreme executive scrutiny. Sales teams must pivot from selling purely on 'price' to selling on 'routing guide resilience'—proving that paying a fair market rate today prevents catastrophic supply chain failures tomorrow.

News Impact Timeline

🔍 Competitive Intelligence

Demand Shift Indicators

👥 Customer Sector Analysis

🗺️ Regional & Lane Analysis

📍 Primary Region Focus: Midwest (Focus: Iowa, Illinois, Indiana)

The Midwest is currently the most volatile and opportunistic freight region in the country. A looming blizzard threatening Iowa and Minnesota is causing massive capacity displacement, while simultaneous river flooding in Illinois and Indiana is forcing inefficient detours. Combined with the $4.892 national diesel average, carriers are demanding extreme hazard and fuel premiums to enter the region. However, carriers currently trapped in the Midwest are desperate for outbound 'escape' freight before the snow hits, creating massive arbitrage opportunities for brokers who can match inbound premium freight with discounted outbound loads.

🛣️ Key Lane Watch

Des Moines, IA → Chicago, IL:

This critical I-80 corridor is under severe threat from impending blizzard conditions and high winds. Shippers are panic-pushing agricultural and food products out of Iowa before the weekend, while carriers are demanding massive premiums to operate in the hazardous conditions.

Indianapolis, IN → Atlanta, GA:

This traditional North-South corridor is being complicated by Wabash River flooding in southern Indiana and the crippling $4.892 diesel average. Carriers are rejecting standard routing guide rates, demanding fuel surcharges for the 500+ mile transit.

🚨 Actionable Alerts

Rate Spike Warnings:

Capacity Shortage Alerts:

Opportunity Zones:

🎯 Strategic Recommendations for Today

💼 For Customer Sales:

Narrative: Lead all conversations with the reality of the $4.892 diesel average and the severe weather paralyzing I-80. Explain that the 2.0% overnight increase in spot loads means their competitors' routing guides are failing, and ETA's premium spot rates are the only way to guarantee weekend delivery.

Action: Proactively audit all Midwest and transcontinental freight scheduled for the weekend. Call shippers immediately to secure hazard pay approvals before the blizzard and wind storms fully close the highways.

🚛 For Carrier Reps:

Sourcing Focus: Focus entirely on securing Flatbed capacity for industrial projects (where margins are highest) and Reefer capacity in the Midwest. Use outbound Midwest freight as a lifeline to carriers looking to escape the blizzard.

Negotiation Leverage: Use the impending weather as leverage. Tell carriers in the Midwest: 'Take this load to Chicago now, or you'll be snowed in until Tuesday.' For flatbeds, leverage the massive 80,548 load volume to build dedicated, high-paying project lanes.

🧭 Savvy Broker's Playbook

🔑 Executive Signal Summary


📊 What the board is really saying


🚚 Equipment-by-equipment trading plan


🌪️ Corridor and regional playbook


🧠 Market psychology: what others will miss today


💼 Sales desk priorities for today


🤝 Carrier desk priorities for today


⚠️ Risk and compliance watch


📈 24–72 hour scenario map


✅ Highest-value actions before the day ends

  1. Reprice every uncovered van, reefer, and flatbed quote

    • Van is firmer.
    • Reefer and flatbed are clearly above screen.
  2. Split the desk by market reality

    • Put more labor into flatbed, heavy haul, and reefer.
    • Keep van reps focused on regional, reload-dense, weather-light lanes.
  3. Audit every Midwest and Rockies shipment

    • Verify:
    • facility status
    • route plan
    • appointment flexibility
    • weather language in rate con
    • realistic transit
  4. Use Specialized as your main tactical buy-side segment

    • It is the cleanest place to negotiate below screen today.
  5. Start building Monday-Wednesday inbound Midwest coverage now

    • The best trucks for recovery freight are often booked before the storm fully hits, not after.
  6. Measure the right numbers tonight

    • Quote-to-cover time
    • Margin erosion from first quote to covered truck
    • Percentage of weather-exposed loads with facility confirmation
    • Percentage of open-deck and reefer loads fully specified before pricing

🧭 Bottom line

📅 This Day in History

483: Election of Pope Felix III following the death of Pope Simplicius earlier that month.
1323: Siege of Warangal: Sultan Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq sends an expeditionary army led by his son, Muhammad bin Tughluq, to the Kakatiya capital Warangal – after ruler Prataparudra has refused to make tribute payments. He besieges the city and finally, after a campaign of 8 months, Prataparudra surrenders on November 9.
1825: Pope Leo XII publishes the apostolic constitution Quo Graviora in which he renewed the prohibition on Catholics joining freemasonry.

💭 Quote of the Day

"Our greatest fears lie in anticipation."

— Honore de Balzac