# Holiday inventory surge supportive of double-digit-plus TL contract rates - FreightWaves

> The October Logistics Managers' Index showed truckload capacity contracting for an 11th straight month, with transportation prices expanding at a high rate. Upstream inventory builds ahead of the holiday season are supporting higher truckload contract rates.

- Date: 2026-11-03 · published 2026-11-03T18:08:46.862Z
- Category: logistics · region US · magnitude low
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/78095-holiday-inventory-surge-supportive-of-double-digit-plus-tl-contract-rates
- Commodities: [Barge Freight (St. Louis)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/BARGE.md)

## Why it matters

Tight truck capacity and rising freight rates increase the cost of moving feed ingredients and finished feed domestically, which can widen regional basis spreads.

## Read by commodity

- BARGE: neutral

## Sources

- freightwaves.com: https://www.freightwaves.com/news/holiday-inventory-surge-supportive-of-double-digit-plus-tl-contract-rates

---
Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.