Let’s state it plainly: 2025 will not look like 2024.
Change is in the air, and not just in the White House. The new administration obviously will influence the direction of the freight markets, but when combing through the data and indicators, patterns had already emerged. Those signals suggest that, after two years of low rates and loose capacity, the transportation industry is likely to tighten in 2025.
For all the uncertainty and volatility that define the trucking industry, the ebbs and flows of the business cycle are constant. To that end, we expect the transportation market to enter its next cycle in the new year.
The timing, though, is less clear. Best guesses currently are Q2, but the path won’t be a straight line. While the cycle points to broad trends when zoomed out, the actual path ahead will be full of detours and backtracks. The 2025 Freight Focus is devoted to finding the patterns in the mixed signals – to adding clarity and confidence to the year ahead.
This is an excerpt from our annual report, “Freight Focus.” Read it in full in full here.
Now and next
The challenges of the past two years won’t simply fall by the wayside. DAT is committed to providing transportation and logistics professionals the tools to overcome the obstacles of today while prepping for tomorrow. It defines our priorities for 2025.
Trust and confidence
Fraud exploded post-COVID for all industries, but transportation became a frequent target. In an industry built on relationships, the ability to make trusted connections is fundamental. All the enhancements we’re making with the DAT One network are with those goals in mind: to provide the most trusted and reliable resource for building and managing business networks.
Predictive analytics
The DAT iQ database recently eclipsed $1 trillion in collected freight transactions, but we’re not in the business of just collecting data. The value is in elevating these data points into insights that predict where the markets are heading, arming logistics teams with the ability to plan and execute with confidence.
Intuitive automation
AI doesn’t have to be about doing more with less – it can be about doing more with more. Freight has traditionally been a hands-on business, but automating some of these manual processes gives businesses the ability to devote more time and talent to critical areas that bolster their bottom lines.
The final mile
As we close the books on 2024, the coming year promises a dynamic freight environment – one driven by change but full of opportunity. In the following pages, our team of analysts pores over the data and key metrics to provide a roadmap for where the trucking industry is heading.
Thanks for reading. Here’s to a safe and successful 2025.
– Jeff Clementz, CEO, DAT
