Nearly two-thirds of carriers surveyed in this quarter’s Transport Capital Partners (TCP) Business Expectations Survey indicated they plan to increase capacity. These numbers have remained fairly constant since August 2010.
“The balance between freight and trucks remains tight,” says Richard Mikes, TCP partner. “It seems we must face up to the fact, early on, that drivers are truly a brake on truck supply, as well as on truck orders.”
The number of carriers expecting capacity additions of less than 5% has inched upward, from 22% in February 2011 to 45% today. For those intending to add more capacity (ie 6-10%), the trend has been downward, from 25% in February 2011 to 15% today.
Smaller carriers are more conservative than larger fleets in their buying plans. Twenty-three percent of larger carriers intend to add more than 6% capacity, compared with only 15% of smaller carriers.
With smaller carriers also less optimistic about volumes, it is unsurprising that they are less likely to add capacity. These smaller carriers may also be having a harder time finding financing for expansion than their larger competitors.
“Tight credit remains a challenge for a lot of businesses, particularly for truckers, and especially those not well positioned,” says Steven Dutro, TCP Partner.