Freight trends from DAT One and DAT iQ
Spot market data for Oct. 10–16, 2026 (Week 42)
DAT One load posts totaled 2.6 million for the week of Oct. 10-16, down 3% from the prior week. Total equipment posts slipped 1% to 184,126. National average broker-to-carrier spot rates fell for all three equipment types, and lower diesel prices accounted for nearly all of the decline. Linehaul rates, which exclude an average fuel surcharge amount, held near the prior week’s levels, edging up 1 cent for reefer and staying essentially flat for dry van and flatbed.
7-day average broker-to-carrier spot rates (linehaul + fuel surcharge):
▼ Van: $3.09 per mile, down 3 cents
▼ Reefer: $3.66 per mile, down 2 cents
▼ Flatbed: $3.64 per mile, down 4 cents
Dry van: Freight cooled while rates held.
▼ Loads: 1,209,633, down 6%
▼ Trucks: 124,659, down 1%
— Linehaul rate: $2.26 per mile, essentially flat
▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 9.7, down from 10.3 the prior week
Reefer: The only linehaul gain of the week.
▼ Loads: 562,780, down 3%
— Trucks: 35,690, essentially flat
▲ Linehaul rate: $2.76 per mile, up 1 cent
▼ Load-to-truck ratio: 15.8, down from 16.2 the prior week
Flatbed: The only ratio to rise.
▲ Loads: 868,556, up 1%
▼ Trucks: 23,777, down 2%
— Linehaul rate: $2.65 per mile, essentially flat
▲ Load-to-truck ratio: 36.5, up from 35.7 the prior week
Market analysis from Dean Croke, industry analyst at DAT Freight & Analytics
Capacity remains the key factor in pricing. Linehaul rates held near last week’s levels as load posts cooled, while lower diesel prices shaved 3 to 4 cents a mile off the average fuel surcharge. Truck posts on DAT One are 21% to 27% below a year ago, while load posts run 12% to 23% above. Linehaul rates remain about a third above last year: 35% for van, 33% for reefer, and 29% for flatbed. The 35-day DAT iQ RateCast forecast has van linehaul rates easing to $2.23 a mile by late November, reefer edging up to $2.78, and flatbed slipping to $2.59.
Flatbed linehaul pricing is well above its seasonal range. It’s 26% above the nine-year seasonal average and above the top of the nine-year range for this point in the calendar. The flatbed load-to-truck ratio was the only one of the three to rise last week, to 36.5 from 35.7, and is more than three times the dry van ratio.
Reefer rates climbed in the Midwest. DAT’s Upper Midwest region posted the highest reefer rate among the top origin regions, up 13 cents to $3.65 a mile, followed by the Lower Midwest, up 10 cents to $3.33. Reefer linehaul is 68 cents a mile higher than a year ago, again the largest year-over-year gain in cents among the three equipment types.
Economic reports to watch this week: September housing starts and building permits, a gauge of building-materials freight for flatbed, come out Tuesday. October readings on manufacturing and services activity, and the University of Michigan’s final October consumer sentiment index, are scheduled for Friday.
