The improving job numbers provide further confirmation that an economic recovery is underway. The drop in commodity and fuel prices is likely a brief reprieve on the way to a further upswing in business growth. With rising demand, shippers are facing a broad array of challenges in 2011. A tightening transportation equipment supply is being triggered by driver shortages, new US government regulations and a reluctance of carrier executives to add capacity. This, coupled with rising freight rates and fuel surcharges, is causing shippers to revisit their freight transportation paradigms.
