Transportation Price Index (TPI) Continues to Rise, Slowed as Diesel Prices Level Off
(Austin, TX – August 6, 2008) Austin-based uShip today released July 2008 figures from the Transportation Price Index (TPI), found atwww.transportationpriceindex.com, which rose 7.78% overall to $2.77 from June 2008. The July 2008 TPI represents an increase of 8.63% from $2.55 in July 2007. The TPI is released on a monthly basis and was designed by uShip to track important data related to transportation costs. This innovative measure uses proprietary, transactional information from the uShip marketplace to provide aggregate and categorical pricing figures expressed in US dollars per ton-mile.
Diesel prices fell slightly more than 1% for the second consecutive month but remain up over 61% since July 2007. The TPI had been lagging behind rising diesel prices for months, but finally spiked, rising nearly 18.5% from May to June 2008. The TPI continues to climb, though its growth may be curbed by more stable diesel fuel prices.
According to uShip CEO Matt Chasen, “With the recent sustained increase in diesel prices, the sudden jump in the June TPI seemed almost inevitable.” Chasen notes that if diesel costs start to climb again, the TPI will likely follow suit. “The slight drop in the cost of diesel over the last two months is encouraging, but fear of continued increases in fuel costs may keep transportation prices at their current, elevated levels. If those fears concerning future fuel cost increases come to fruition, it is likely they will be reflected in future TPI calculations.”
Looking at major categories which factor into the TPI calculations, the price of transporting vehicles dropped almost 10% when compared to June after showing an increase of more than 6% the previous month. The decrease in vehicle transport cost played a significant role in slowing the overall growth in the TPI this month. On the year, however, the price of transporting vehicles, motorcycles, and boats remains well above July 2007 levels, with the vehicles category up over 23%, and motorcycles and boats up 19% and 27%, respectively. Motorcycle and boat transportation prices have remained relatively stable since June 2008.
The household goods category showed an increase of nearly 6.5% in July but is down slightly to $3.79 since last year. Freight showed a significant drop of just over 20% for the month and is now at $0.55, almost 7% lower than its July 2007 level.
For more information about the TPI and its methodology, please visit www.transportationpriceindex.com. To request an interview with Mr. Chasen, please contact Mickey Millsap at 800-698-7447 ext 102. You may also e-mail him at [email protected]. High resolution images are available upon request.
About uShip
Founded in 2003, uShip is the first and largest online marketplace for shipping services. Members list anything they need shipped, from household goods to vehicles to freight, and receive bids from thousands of feedback-rated service providers, including movers, carriers, transporters, van lines, freight brokers and independent service providers. On any given day, there are thousands of shipments listed on uShip representing millions of dollars of business. It’s totally free for members to list shipments and for service providers to place bids. uShip’s reverse-auction format and patent-pending search technology dramatically reduce shipping costs by allowing service providers to find shipments along their routes and fill empty cargo space. uShip’s feedback system holds service providers accountable for their service and rewards those that perform well. Please visit www.uship.com for more information.
