Question for the vets??

Greetings, The trucking industry is unpredictable, what I can share is that, it will never be as it was before 2020.
There will always be "crumbs" for O/O with Authority, O/O's Leased to Companies will survive, Co. Drivers will earn a Living....(it is "MegaBig" companies time) Note...that there are companies already Testing Driverless Trucks, keeping a Low Profile.......The future is uncertain....

 

Rates are normalizing.. “Like it was” was an anomaly.

I remember lower spot rates just a few years ago..problem now is the fuel prices.

If you jumped in thinking last year’s rates were the way it was..welcome to reality.

 

Brace yourself, we're in uncharted territory.

Normally, I'd say bout a year. These days? Probably a lot longer than that.

 

Nobody knows for sure. The two people that do most of the number crunching for me both had the same advice..."Do not incur any long term debt for the time being". They told me that last August.
Translation...'even the people who should know, don't know.
I trimmed a little fat off my company and we should be alright but I know a lot of guys who are one breakdown away from bankruptcy.

 

Could be a year could be a few years. We haven't hit bottom yet either I don't believe.

 

Those who have been in trucking as an owner operator or with their own company understand that trucking is a cyclical business. You are going to have good times and bad times. Sometimes you make the years profit with just a couple months. Not every week or month will be very profitable. The problem is because of the whole corona deal the rates spiked with fuel prices dropping and people new to the industry thought that was typical. I remember few years ago spot market freight for flatbed was tough to get $1.25 a mile sometimes. There’s a reason mega trucking companies have profit margins so low (some even 1%).

Just make smart decisions, don’t finance more than you can handle, pay yourself a modest salary, keep the rest in the business.

As to answer your question I think fuel prices will get better next year around $3 but I don’t see an upswing in total profit until after the next presidential election.

 

You can take a leap and make your own product to haul even.

Why not move somewhere that needs a pit, open a pit, and then go after highways contracts, construction sites and such, buy a fleet of gravel trucks, and live the dream

 

Every recession is different. Sure there are average length of recessions and average depth of recessions. You will only know how deep and how long this recession was once it is over. Stay out of debt is the safest way to enter a recession. Some people borrow a lifetime amount of debt the second week they get overtime at their job. Don't be one of those people.