November 2024 Economic Insights White Paper
U.S. Container Volume Reached 2,494,635 Import TEUs
Source | Descartes
- Month over Month: Increased by 1.7%
- Year over Year: Marked a significant 14.4% rise
- US Ports: Continued improvements in port transit delays despite higher volumes. Ports like Long Beach and New York/New Jersey saw steady performance, with Los Angeles and Houston continuing to gain momentum.
- Peak Volume Comparison: September’s container import volumes were just 1.4% below the year’s peak in July (2,556,180 TEUs).
The Logistics Managers’ Index (LMI) Climbs to 58.9
Source | the-lmi.com
- Transportation Prices: Continued upward trend for the fifth month, reaching 64.1.
- Inventory Costs: Declined 5.5 to 65.8, the highest since February 2023, driven by increased inventory holding.
- Warehousing Capacity: Saw a modest rise to 55.8, reflecting high demand for storage space.
- Warehousing Utilization: Increased to 62.9, as retailers ramp up storage for the holiday season.
- Transportation Utilization: Continued expansion, reading at 59.7.
- Transportation Capacity: Dropped to 50.0, indicating tightening availability but has not moved towards contraction.
U.S. Manufacturing PMI® Decreased to 46.5%
Source | ISM.com
- New Orders: Dropped to 44.6% (-2.8%)
- Production: Fell to 44.8% (-1.1%)
- Employment: Rose to 46.0% (+2.6%)
- Supplier Deliveries: Declined to 50.5% (-2.1%)
- Inventories: Increased to 50.3% (+5.8%)
- Customers’ Inventories: Rose to 48.4% (+2.6%)
- Prices Index: Increased to 54.0% (+1.1%)
- Backlog of Orders: Improved to 43.6% (+1.9%)
- New Export Orders: Dipped to 48.6% (-0.4%)
- Imports: Increased to 49.6% (+1.0%)
The ATA For-Hire Truck Tonnage Index Dropped to 114.6
Source | Trucking.org
- Month-Over-Month: Rose by 1.2%, reflecting the continued recovery in freight activity.
- Year-Over-Year: Remained unchanged compared to October 2023, showing stable conditions.
- Not-Seasonally Adjusted Index: Reached 121.3 in October, an 8.6% increase from September, reflecting raw tonnage growth.
U.S. Retail and Food Service Sales Hit $718.9 Billion
Source | Census.gov
- Month-over-Month: Increased by 0.6% from September’s $714.4 billion.
- Year-over-Year: Up 2% compared to October 2023, reflecting steady consumer spending.
- Key Drivers: Nonstore retail sales continued strong growth, fueled by holiday e-commerce demand. Food services also showed resilience, contributing significantly to overall gains.
Cass Freight Index Insights
Source | Cassinfo.com
- Shipments: Declined 1.9% month-over-month and 2.4% year-over-year to 1.081.
- Expenditures: Dropped 1.5% month-over-month to 3.175, reflecting easing costs amid softer freight activity.
- Inferred Freight Rates: Freight rates increased by 4.2% compared to August, though they remained 1.4% lower than September 2023, suggesting a trend toward stabilization after months of decline.