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Jan 14, 2008 11:25 AM

The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) rose 0.7 percent in November from its October level, rising for the second consecutive month, according to the Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

The November rise was the fourth in the last five months. At 110.2, the freight TSI is down 2.6 percent from its peak of 113.1 achieved in November 2005 and up 1.9 percent in the two months from its recent low of 108.1 in September 2007.

The freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in the output of services provided by the for-hire freight transportation industries. The index consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines, and air freight.

The November increase kept the freight index in positive territory for the year after having been down for the first nine months. For the first 11 months of 2007, the freight TSI was up 1.2 percent. In 2006, the index declined 2.7 percent during the 11-month period.

The November freight TSI of 110.2 was up 1.8 percent from its November 2006 level, its best November-to-November performance in the last three years, according to the information.

The November index remains lower than November levels of the recent past, 1.1 percent lower than the November 2004 level and 2.6 percent lower than the November 2005 level. Despite declines from these recent November levels, the freight index has increased 6.3 percent in five years and 14.6 percent in 10 years.