Although truck freight spot rates are at record highs, and tender rejections are at their highest since 2022, demand is narrow and unevenly focused on industrial freight rather than a broad consumer rebound. That’s the conclusion from a report by LeadCoverage, a consulting group for supply chain, logistics and freight technology companies.
The report, released July 16, “Is the Freight Recession Over?” includes analysis of the 2026 freight market recovery and its implications for how freight and logistics companies position themselves for the year ahead. It concludes that there is “a distinction that most freight market commentary has blurred, the difference between a recovery driven by returning demand and one driven by disappearing supply.”
"The freight recession is finally taking a positive turn because hundreds of thousands of trucks have left the road and a federal enforcement push is pulling out tens of thousands more," said Will Haraway, co-founder and chief strategy officer at LeadCoverage. "A recovery built on scarce capacity is real, but fragile. The companies that understand that will set their rates, contracts, and messaging from a position of accuracy rather than hope."
