Podcast
The Load Letter
Hosted by Andrew · EN
The love letter is a daily freight industry briefing built specifically for freight brokers. Every episode cuts through the noise and delivers only what matters:
- spot rates
- capacity shifts
- shipper behavior
- regulatory changes
- market intel
All framed around how it affects your freight or your brokerage. Hosted by a freight industry insider, built for freight brokers who are too busy to read everything but can afford to miss nothing.
24episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
July 16, 2026 | Import surge peaks, reefer tightens, and tariff clock ticks
3w ago00:07:42Tap to summarizeThe spring import surge is transitioning, LA posted its busiest June ever, but ocean rates are softening and a domestic freight hangover is building for import-heavy shippers. California reefer flipped tight across six districts simultaneously, Northeast rates are already moving double digits, and ATRI's record carrier cost numbers explain why flatbed is holding firm at $2.69 a mile. Also covered: Section 122 tariffs expire July 24 with a Section 301 swap expected, J.B. Hunt's Q2 call on DOT enforcement thinning the carrier base, and a new DHL air cargo route connecting Southeast Asia to Cincinnati. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.
Transcribe →July 15, 2026 | Diesel Risk Is Real, Get Ahead of Your FSC Conversations Now
4w ago00:07:07Tap to summarizeIran's threat to block energy exports sent Brent crude up sixty-three cents in a single session, and with diesel already at $4.58 and Q3 fuel costs projecting higher, brokers need to get in front of shipper FSC conversations before the market moves further. Also in today's briefing: the Port of Long Beach posts its third-busiest June on record, flatbed spot leads all modes at $2.69 on strong manufacturing and construction demand, parcel rate pain is creating a truckload business development opening, and Project44 is splitting into two companies, one of them built specifically for brokers and 3PLs. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.
Transcribe →July 14, 2026 | Oil spike, stockpiling surge, and the Gordie Howe Bridge opening
4w ago00:07:53Tap to summarizeBrent crude surged nearly 15% in two days and diesel is at $4.58 a gallon, and brokers need to check FSC table alignment on contract lanes before carriers come knocking. Manufacturing backlogs are at their highest since late 2022 as businesses stockpile ahead of a volatile second half, setting up a capacity tightening story for Q3. Also covered: the Gordie Howe Bridge opens July 27th and what it means for US-Canada Midwest lanes, DP World's Hormuz bypass port plans, a Project44 split targeting LSPs directly, the General Mills supply chain overhaul, and an Illinois class-action suit on contractor classification. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.
Transcribe →July 13, 2026 | Hormuz Closure Hits Freight: Rates, Ports, and Carriers
4w ago00:06:59Tap to summarizeIran has closed the Strait of Hormuz and attacked a container ship in the Gulf, sending oil prices higher and putting immediate pressure on fuel surcharges, drayage lanes, and carrier relationships across every mode. Diesel is already at $4.58 a gallon with upward momentum, import volumes were running hot from tariff front-running before this shock hit, and brokers near major port markets need to move now. Also covered: Toyota's Tacoma production shift to San Antonio and what the Texas manufacturing buildout means for flatbed capacity, plus a note on the Transport Topics relaunch. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.
Transcribe →July 10, 2026 | Spot Rates Beat Contract as Capacity Tightens
Jul 1000:07:30Tap to summarizeDry van spot rates have topped contract rates for the first time since 2022, and DAT says it's a capacity crunch, not a demand surge, which means brokers need to renegotiate their worst contract lanes now. The episode also covers a seven-month streak of Class 8 order growth, EPA's proposed NOx and 2027 emissions rollback, over $11 million in stolen truckloads recovered by Indiana State Police, a capacity flip on Mexico produce crossings through South Texas, and a new autonomous trucking route launching in Texas. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com.
Transcribe →July 9, 2026 | Rates Hit a Record, But It's a Supply Story
Jul 900:07:14Tap to summarizeTrucking capacity conditions just hit their strongest reading ever, but DAT's ton-mile data shows the rate surge is being driven by trucks leaving the market, not by stronger shipper demand, so brokers need to play carrier and shipper conversations differently this week. Also covered: a shaky Iran ceasefire pushing diesel and fuel surcharge risk higher, the Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger talk that could reshape long-haul dry van lanes, a pre-tariff import surge set to flood ports and drayage capacity before the July 24th deadline, a capacity flip on South Texas reefer crossings, and a soft May tonnage reading on flatbed. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com
Transcribe →July 8, 2026 | Diesel Spikes as Crude Jumps 6% on Iran News
Jul 800:07:37Tap to summarizeCrude oil jumped six percent overnight after Trump said the Iran ceasefire is over, pushing diesel to $4.92 a gallon and forcing brokers into fuel surcharge conversations before their margins take the hit. This episode also covers a legal ruling widening broker liability around carrier vetting, an early and uneven ocean peak season driving up transpacific rates, DAT data showing today's rate spike is capacity-driven rather than demand-driven, the new Savannah port freight corridor opening July 16th, and a major drug seizure at the Hidalgo border crossing. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com
Transcribe →July 7, 2026 | $10M Cargo Theft Ring Exposes Carrier Vetting Gaps
Jul 700:07:03Tap to summarizeEight defendants face charges in a $10 million cargo theft conspiracy built on carrier impersonation, and brokers who skip verification steps could be next in the crosshairs. This episode also covers new fraud-fighting tech from InMotion Global and SearchCarriers, softening ISM services data flagging risk in ag-adjacent lanes, Toyota's Tacoma production shift from Mexico to San Antonio, Lovesac and La-Z-Boy's moves on contract freight and distribution hubs, and what weak Greenbrier railcar earnings signal for truck-intermodal conversion. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter, theloadletter.com
Transcribe →July 6, 2026 | Montgomery Case Reopens, Broker Liability Back in Play
Jul 600:07:05Tap to summarizeThe Montgomery case just got sent back to district court in Illinois, and it's set to keep broker liability exposure front and center for the rest of the year, so carrier vetting paperwork needs to be airtight. This episode also covers Mexico's incoming customs crackdown on cross-border freight, why top carriers are getting pickier about which brokers they'll run for, Descartes' acquisition of Drivin and rising integration expectations, and how Lovesac and La-Z-Boy are reshaping capacity buying and distribution networks amid elevated diesel prices. New briefing every morning from The Load Letter — theloadletter.com
Transcribe →The Load Letter — July 3, 2026
Jul 300:07:24Tap to summarizeWorking a desk on the Friday before the Fourth? Good — because CargoNet is flagging elevated theft risk starting right now, and organized theft groups specifically target this weekend when staffing is thin, facilities are closed, and loaded trailers sit unattended. Today's briefing covers what to do before your freight moves tonight, Highway requiring ELD hookups for all carriers post-Montgomery and which carriers are about to become unbookable if you don't audit your active list now, and the Southeast reefer market reorganizing in real time — Florida gone, Georgia carrying the region almost alone, South Texas capacity patchier than it looks on the load board. We also get into port truckers still getting crushed at the major container ports and how to use that pricing window without burning the dray relationships you'll need when volumes snap, Idaho eliminating non-domiciled CDLs as another slow-moving friction point in driver supply, and McCormick taking a $28 million tariff refund and immediately allocating it to offset logistics costs — a tell on exactly how tight food and beverage shipper margins are right now. One call to your shipper this morning is worth more than a cargo claim conversation next week.
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