Latest Spot Market Results: Rates Reach New Highs

Spot Market Rates Hit Seasonal Peak to Start the New Year

The Spot Market started the new year on a strong note. Broker-posted rates in the Truckstop.com system climbed during the week that ended January 2, 2026 (week 52 of 2025). Dry van and refrigerated rates reached their highest levels in several years. Flatbed rates also moved higher after a rare drop during Christmas week.

Spot Market Overview: Rates at Multi-Year Highs

The Spot Market followed a classic holiday pattern. Rates moved up as freight shifted out of Christmas week and into the first week of the new year. Refrigerated spot rates posted a large gain. They were the highest since February 2022. Dry van spot rates rose more modestly. Even so, they reached the highest level since early 2023.

History suggests this surge will not last long. Barring major winter storms, van spot rates usually ease in early January after the seasonal peak.

Spot Market Loads Rebound After Christmas Drop

Total load activity in the Spot Market bounced back 38.2% after a steep 59% plunge during Christmas week. Because the 2024 and 2025 holiday calendars do not line up, year-over-year comparisons look distorted. Week 52 in 2024 was Christmas week. Week 52 in 2025 is the week after Christmas. Even with that wrinkle, load postings were more than 57% higher than 2024’s week 52. Compared with 2024’s week after Christmas, loads were up less than 7%. Truck postings dipped 1.4%. As a result, the Market Demand Index – the ratio of loads to trucks – improved from the low levels seen during Christmas week.

Dry Van Rates: Prices Up, Volume Mixed

Dry van spot rates increased just under 3 cents. That was the smallest gain in three weeks and weaker than the average increase usually seen in the final week of the year. Even so, the trend over several weeks has been strong. Dry van rates have risen in eight of the last nine weeks and are up more than 44 cents over that stretch.

Compared with 2024’s week 52, dry van rates were about 10% higher. They were about 9% higher than 2024’s week after Christmas. Dry van loads rose 30.1% from Christmas week. Volume was nearly 34% higher than in 2024’s week 52. However, it was still more than 2% lower than in the 2024 week after Christmas.

Refrigerated Spot Market: Strongest Gains

Refrigerated spot rates in the Spot Market jumped more than 27 cents. This was the largest week-over-week increase since International Roadcheck week in May.

Refrigerated rates were nearly 23% higher than in 2024’s week 52. They were also 18% higher than in 2024’s week after Christmas. In both cases, the year-over-year comparison was the strongest since early 2022.

Refrigerated loads rose 44.9% from Christmas week. Volume was about 24% above 2024’s week 52 but remained more than 3% lower than in the 2024 week after Christmas.

Flatbed Rates Recover After Rare Drop

Flatbed spot rates increased just over 2 cents after falling just over 4 cents in the prior week. The new gain put flatbed rates 5.5% above 2024’s week 52 and nearly 7% higher than 2024’s week after Christmas.

Flatbed loads recovered 44.4% after plunging about 66% during Christmas week. Load volume was more than 124% higher than in 2024’s week 52. But it was still less than 26% above the 2024 week after Christmas.

What the Spot Market Signals for Early 2026

The current Spot Market shows strong seasonal pricing but also some signs of cooling ahead. Rates for dry van and refrigerated freight are at multi-year highs after weeks of steady gains. Yet history suggests that these levels usually do not last long once the holiday surge ends.

Unless winter weather creates new disruptions, van spot rates likely will drift lower in early January. The next few weeks should reveal whether December’s strength was a short holiday spike or the start of a firmer spot market for 2026.

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