The Transportation Services Index (TSI) for freight rose 1.3 percent in March from the February level, rising after two monthly declines, according to information from the Department of Transportation.
The rise was the largest monthly increase since May 2006. The March freight index of 109.1 was down 1.4 percent from its March 2006 level, and down 3.3 percent from its peak of 112.8 first achieved in January 2005.
Year-to-date, the freight index rose 0.6 percent, following a decline in December-to-March for the previous year.
TSI is a single seasonally adjusted index of the month-to-month changes in the output of services provided by the for-hire transportation industries, including railroad, air, truck, inland waterways, pipeline, and local transit.