Flatbed Rates

Flatbed Truckload (TL) Sector

January 2026 Update

Flatbed market conditions entering January 2026 continue to reflect persistent weakness tied to soft industrial production, delayed infrastructure execution, and cautious private-sector capital spending. While weather-related disruptions in late December and early January briefly tightened capacity in select regions, ACT Research’s January Freight Forecast confirms that underlying fundamentals remain subdued. Construction, manufacturing, and energy-related freight continue to lag, leaving flatbed among the slowest-recovering truckload segments.

Earlier pre-tariff activity has fully unwound, and recent rate stability has been driven more by episodic weather disruptions and selective project freight than by a sustained improvement in demand.

Spot Market Rates
Flatbed spot rates experienced modest tightening during late-December and early-January weather events but continue to lack meaningful demand support. Year-over-year comparisons still benefit from a depressed prior-year baseline rather than signaling a true recovery. ACT notes that underlying volumes remain weak across steel, machinery, construction materials, and energy-adjacent freight.

Load postings remain below normal seasonal levels, and flatbed capacity remains ample despite tightening observed in other TL segments such as dry van and reefer. Public infrastructure freight continues to provide a limited floor, supported by utility, data center, and select public works activity, but broader federal infrastructure disbursement remains slow and project timelines continue to extend. Ongoing softness in manufacturing and a housing market still under pressure continue to weigh heavily on flatbed networks.

Contract Market Rates
Flatbed contract rates remain largely unchanged entering 2026, extending the flat pricing environment that has characterized much of the past year. Shippers remain defensive, favoring shorter bid cycles and aggressive cost containment amid continued uncertainty in industrial demand. Year-over-year comparisons remain negative, and ACT’s January outlook suggests limited near-term pricing momentum.

Carriers continue to prioritize margin preservation over expansion, deploying equipment selectively and maintaining discipline around network balance and yield management. Without a clearer improvement in upstream commodity demand, construction activity, or industrial utilization, contract rates are expected to remain largely stagnant through early 2026.

Outlook
The flatbed segment is expected to remain under pressure through early 2026, with recovery constrained by weak industrial and energy freight, delayed infrastructure execution, and tariff-driven cost inflation affecting steel, heavy equipment, and components.

A more meaningful rebound will depend on:

Accelerated federal and state infrastructure disbursement
Improved manufacturing utilization and industrial output
Greater stability in trade, tariff, and emissions-related policy

Until those conditions improve, flatbed carriers are expected to remain focused on yield discipline, operating efficiency, and asset control, with limited pricing upside likely before mid- to late 2026.

To see how flatbed rates change in the future, and for detailed analysis and forecasts or truckload, less-than-truckload, and intermodal, see ACT's freight & transportation forecast.