Commentary
$ 84.1 billion dollars on an annual basis in 2024 versus $ 61 billion for warehousing .
Unfortunately for trucking companies that haul materials to office building construction sites , inflation-adjusted construction of office buildings has been moving horizontally since early 2023 and is down approximately 29 % from 2019 levels . Although some companies have curtailed remote work , levels of working from home have been stable since January 2023 , according to Stanford economist Nick Bloom .
That suggests no uptick in office building construction is coming in 2025 .
Data center construction
Data center construction in the United States has been surging over the past two years , with inflationadjusted construction up 80 % as of November 2024 from the average 2023 level . For perspective , construction levels today are 12 times what they were a decade ago , adjusted for inflation .
At present , the greatest hurdle for constructing data centers does not appear to be demand — which is voracious — but rather supply-side constraints , such as obtaining enough electricians and electricity and municipalities placing limits on datacenter construction .
Motor carriers hauling freight for electric equipment manufacturers will benefit from the AI computing boom that is straining current power generation and transmission capacity , with domestic production in this sector currently at its highest levels since the global financial crisis of 2007 – 08 .
Semiconductor ’ s short-lived surge
On the surface , data for spending on manufacturing plants looks downright rosy , with the inflation-adjusted value of construction put in place currently 20 % above 2023 levels and double its 2017 – 19 levels . Because manufacturing accounts for most for-hire trucking demand , a cursory look would suggest strong demand for hauling materials to build plants and a surge of demand coming once these plants are completed .
However , most of the increase in construction spending is for electronics and electrical equipment , appliances and components . These subsectors are capturing investment in semiconductor plants and electric vehicle batteries .
In 2019 , the value of construction put in place for those subsectors was $ 8.3 billion ; for the first 11 months of 2024 , it was $ 128.3 billion ( annualized ), or 15.4 times greater . In comparison , construction of all other factories has increased from $ 72.3 billion in 2019 to $ 103 billion in 2024 ( annualized ), and that isn ’ t considering inflation . On an inflation-adjusted basis , investment in sectors outside of electronics and electrical goods remains unchanged from 2019 levels .
Given that semiconductor plants generate relatively limited volumes of freight for for-hire trucking companies , the construction spending data for the remainder of manufacturing coupled with the tepid number of new plant openings in the United States since the
www . joc . com end of the global financial crisis means trucking firms should not anticipate a flood of freight from newly opened US factories in 2025 .
What to watch
The index I will be watching most closely in 2025 to understand the impact of construction activity on freight demand is the Federal Reserve Board ’ s industrial production index for construction supplies . Movements of that index , which captures production of architectural and structural metals , concrete and concrete products , construction steel , stone mining and quarrying , and various plastic products , to name a few sectors , correspond well to periods recognized as bull versus bear markets for freight demand .
Currently , that index appears to be moving along the bottom of a trough after nearly three years of decline from its most recent peak in the first quarter of 2022 . An increase in this index will be a harbinger of better days to come for trucking companies .
email : mill2831 @ broad . msu . edu
COLOM-PEQ Colombia Poultry Export Quota , Inc . NOTICE OF OPEN TENDER Independent bids are invited for rights to ship U . S . -origin chicken leg quarters to the Republic of Colombia under a tariff-rate quota ( TRQ ) granted by the Republic of Colombia to the United States under the U . S . -Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement .
Bids must be submitted on Thursday , March 6 , 2025 between 9:00 a . m . and 5:00 p . m . Eastern Standard Time ( EST ) Shipment Period : April 1 , 2025 – December 31 , 2025
The following quantity is available : |
|
Total Volume for |
|
Colombian |
All HTS Nos . |
Colombian |
HTS Number |
( Metric Tons ) |
Duty |
Leg Quarters , fresh or chilled |
0207.1300 . A |
) |
|
|
Leg Quarters , frozen |
0207.1400 . A |
) |
23,808.7 |
Zero |
Leg Quarters , seazoned & frozen |
1602.3200 . A |
) |
|
|
The product must be imported into Colombia on April 1 or before December 31 , 2025 .
TRQ Certificates will be awarded to the highest bidder ( s ). Any person or entity incorporated or domiciled , with a legal address , in the United States is eligible to bid . The minimum bid quantity is 1 metric ton ; the minimum bid price is $ 44.08 / metric ton ( i . e ., $ 0.02 / pound ). Bids must be submitted in dollars and cents per metric ton . Bids should not be submitted in amounts that include fractions of a cent . The Certificates of Quota Allocation will be awarded to the highest bidder ( s ).
Important :
CLASSIFIED
1 . Each bidder must submit a performance security in the amount of $ 50,000 or half of the total value of the bid ( s ), whichever is less .
2 . The deadline for submitting a performance security is the day AFTER the auction date ( i . e ., by 6:00 p . m . on Friday , March 7 , 2025 ).
3 . Bids must be submitted electronically at https :// www . colom-peq . org / online _ bid _ form . html . Fax or other forms of
bids will not be accepted .
Potential bidders may obtain the required bid forms and bid instructions at : www . colom-peq . org or by contacting the COLOM-PEQ Administrator , DTB Associates , LLP . Submission of a bid constitutes acceptance of all bid instructions and conditions .
Colombia Poultry Export Quota , Inc . ( COLOM-PEQ ) c / o DTB Associates , LLP 1717 K Street NW , Suite 900 Washington , D . C . 20006 , USA Office phone : ( 202 ) 684-2512 , Fax . ( 207 ) 776-0136 E-mail : administrator @ colom-peq . org – Website : www . colom-peq . org
February 3 , 2025 | Journal of Commerce 61