Morgan Stanley index shows tighter than normal flatbed capacity for Q1   

Morgan Stanley's flatbed freight index is rising again in a similar pattern to 2010 and 2004, and in fact indicated tighter Q1 capacity than in any recent year. The index is far off the pace of Q2 2010, indicating that capacity is far more readily available at this time compared last spring. The flatbed market was particularly hard hit by the fall off in housing starts, but has gained some ground with the growth in U. S. manufacturing. The index measures incremental demand for flatbed truckload services compared to incremental supply. The higher the index the tighter is capacity relative to demand when compared to a prior period.

Graph reproduced with permission from Morgan Stanley. For more information contact: Adam Longson at Adam.Longson@morganstanley.com or Bill Green at William.Greene@morganstanley.com.