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Sllooowwww
- Thread starter Michael Ludwig
- Start date
Igor Galanter
Well-Known Member
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Same here. I really dislike slow periods as it tends to drive rates lower. I find that there are some carriers who "hit the panic button" when loads become scarce and lower rates just to get trucks moving. This in turn leads some brokers to use the temporarily lower rates to quote their customers. As a result, our brokerage firm misses out because we continue to use the "regular, or proper" rate when quoting. Don't get me wrong, I'm not one to pass on a good deal, but if I can't offer it to my customers on a regular basis, it's of no use to me.
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A little slow this week but that can change in a phone call.
Inbound sucks and has for a couple months.
Brokers playing the game trying to drop rates as usual.
I sold a bunch of outbound loads last week and some carriers are just dropping their pants to get the loads. I had a guy offer to do a load to New Orleans for $1750 but I would rather use a guy that was more money but I can trust to do it. on time.
Inbound sucks and has for a couple months.
Brokers playing the game trying to drop rates as usual.
I sold a bunch of outbound loads last week and some carriers are just dropping their pants to get the loads. I had a guy offer to do a load to New Orleans for $1750 but I would rather use a guy that was more money but I can trust to do it. on time.
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Had a broker try giving me grief because I gave him the same rate today as I did a month ago, he tried telling me that my rates are out of line (too high) compared with other carriers considering it's so slow. Told him he might as well call and book their truck then!!!
Shakey
Site Supporter
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people dropping pants on tridem haz mat team loads to Western Canada couldn't believe how much our quotes were off!
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Just wait until that broker gets horrible service from the "cheaper" carriers. How long is it going to take before it sinks in that cheap DOES NOT equal good service and reliability? We may be a small carrier but we take what we do VERY seriously. I refuse to play nursery school games with brokers who are not serious at all about what they do. If you want quality, you have to pay a fair price for it. It's like buying something at the dollar store and then being completely shocked and dismayed when whatever you just bought breaks! Ridiculous!
When I walk into a restaurant and its slow, with lots of empty seats I don't expect a cheaper meal.
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Our salespeople and customers understood/understand when there is a capacity crunch as we have seen over the last couple of years but much more so in the last 6 months and pricing has gone up seemingly on every shipment, everyone is accepting of the large (sometimes 30%+) increases for TL on certain lanes. They understand that when there is quite a bit of freight and few to no trucks in an area that carriers will do what makes good business sense (and what's been coming for a long time), they will demand higher rates and rightfully so. After all, someone will pay the 'going rate' if it happens to be increasing out of an area. This is simple supply/demand learned in Economics 101 and everyone 'gets it'.
On the flip side, for only 2 weeks there has been a very slight (we're talking $50-$100) reductions for TL on only some lanes (a mix of inbound and outbound) and everyone is freaking out? Really? The rates are on a whole much higher than they were 6 months ago but a slight claw back due to supply/demand changing which we all know is only a short term claw back and people cry wolf.
The GOOD NEWS: Not to worry, we all know what happens May-September. Produce! Capacity shifts with more equipment in the south and west and when there are less trucks in places like IL, OH, NJ, etc... prices will go right back up and over what they were last month for example and everyone will be less stressed out. Hold on, everything will be ok!!
Salma: you hit the nail on the head, a carrier I've never worked with before who happens to be $50 less than a great carrier that I work with all the time is a huge risk for little gain. That being said, I'm perfectly ok with rates increasing because of economic factors, why can't they go down a little bit due to the same factors? I mean, why shouldn't the amazing carrier give up a little bit if there is a shift in supply/demand when they have been successful in large gains due to the same reasons?
I shouldn't have had 2 coffees this morning...
Keep well,
Mike
On the flip side, for only 2 weeks there has been a very slight (we're talking $50-$100) reductions for TL on only some lanes (a mix of inbound and outbound) and everyone is freaking out? Really? The rates are on a whole much higher than they were 6 months ago but a slight claw back due to supply/demand changing which we all know is only a short term claw back and people cry wolf.
The GOOD NEWS: Not to worry, we all know what happens May-September. Produce! Capacity shifts with more equipment in the south and west and when there are less trucks in places like IL, OH, NJ, etc... prices will go right back up and over what they were last month for example and everyone will be less stressed out. Hold on, everything will be ok!!
Salma: you hit the nail on the head, a carrier I've never worked with before who happens to be $50 less than a great carrier that I work with all the time is a huge risk for little gain. That being said, I'm perfectly ok with rates increasing because of economic factors, why can't they go down a little bit due to the same factors? I mean, why shouldn't the amazing carrier give up a little bit if there is a shift in supply/demand when they have been successful in large gains due to the same reasons?
I shouldn't have had 2 coffees this morning...
Keep well,
Mike
Igor Galanter
Well-Known Member
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This should largely depend on the relationship with the customer or broker. When a broker or carrier is working with a customer using contracted term rates, then one takes the good with the bad ... and if a broker's relationships with their carrier partners allow for it, then great. But if the relationship between carrier/broker and customer is spot, or between broker and carrier is spot, then there is a saying ... those who live by the sword DIE by the sword! One can't have it both ways.
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You would figure that the price of the US dollar would affect more outbound freight due to US companies buying more off Canadian companies. Any opinions on why this is not happening?
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It's possible that the manufacturing companies that are still left are a little busier than they were before. But the fact is ... so much of what was Ontario manufacturing in particular were either industries where capacity needed to be removed (like paper) or production that has shifted elsewhere like Mexico. The future of automotive is likely there because the trend even in US automotive manufacturing is moving south to the Carolinas, Tennessee, Alabama, etc. Ontario isn't as geographically desirable as it once was ... also our workers are quite well paid compared to Mexico and the Southern US.
Even a lot of food has moved to the US (Smucker's, Heinz to a certain degree, ConAgra, Mondelez, Kellogg, Mars/Wrigley) because they are actually closer to market when they're in the US.
My feeling is that the Ontario and Quebec markets will for the most part remain as 'surplus' capacity markets for some time ... just like what happened in the Northeastern US over the past 20-30 years.
I'm not saying it's good ... it's really not. But I can't see the big multinationals rushing to add Canadian manufacturing any time soon. We'll probably continue to lose some.
Even a lot of food has moved to the US (Smucker's, Heinz to a certain degree, ConAgra, Mondelez, Kellogg, Mars/Wrigley) because they are actually closer to market when they're in the US.
My feeling is that the Ontario and Quebec markets will for the most part remain as 'surplus' capacity markets for some time ... just like what happened in the Northeastern US over the past 20-30 years.
I'm not saying it's good ... it's really not. But I can't see the big multinationals rushing to add Canadian manufacturing any time soon. We'll probably continue to lose some.
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Never have truer words been spoken. Big business will not come back to Ontario/Quebec ... ever. It just doesn't make economic sense to invest in a region that has zero control over its input costs. Both Ontario and Quebec are in political turmoil, and federal official opposition party is so pro-labor it's not even funny. I'm sure it's a minefield big business does not want to navigate.
I briefly misspoke ... There is one big business that will come to Ontario. That will be whoever buys Ontario Power Generation. You can pretty much bet it won't be a Canadian.
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We've already talked about what parts of our operation can we move not just out of Ontario but Canada especially if the Federal Election goes the wrong way.