FreightCasts

Is peak season real? Truckload tender rejections hold near 12.9%, about double last year, and the Nvidia chip cargo theft shows how exposed freight is to fraud. FreightWaves Today for November 10, 2026 covers it.

In this episode, we break down the freight market with data from FreightWaves SONAR. We cover truckload rejections, volumes, reefer capacity, diesel prices, air cargo, drone delivery, and the AI agents now booking freight.

What’s in this episode:

📉 Truckload market and peak season outlook: Outbound Tender Rejections are flat at about 12.5–12.9%, roughly twice last year’s level. Tender volumes are up 12% year over year and 3% from October. We also look at whether rate relief before Thanksgiving will be limited this year.

❄️ Reefer market: Refrigerated tender rejections are near 21%, up from 12.6% a year ago. We also cover the strong El Niño’s potential impact on winter weather and protect-from-freeze capacity.

🚛 Spot rates by mode: We compare reefer, flatbed, and dry van spot rates. We also cover the Pacific Northwest seasonal surge and why flatbed demand tied to AI data center buildout remains strong.

📰 Top freight headlines:

The RICO lawsuit against C.H. Robinson and TQL: jury selection isn’t expected until April 2028, and TQL is pushing for dismissal.
COSCO Shipping Holdings reports an 81% jump in Q3 profit, with Trans-Pacific revenue up 61%.
Six pallets of Nvidia hardware worth $11.4 million vanish on an Oakland-to-Fort Worth shipment, part of a wave of data center freight thefts.

🔐 Cargo theft and freight fraud: Why high-value freight needs stricter carrier vetting, security protocols, and counterparty checks.

🤖 AI agents in logistics: Joel Clum (Chief Commercial Officer) and Nick Ciubotariu(CTO) of ShipStation Global discuss the 250+ AI agents behind their platform, from email-to-quote-to-booking automation to sales tools. We also cover how small and mid-sized shippers can use AI to compete with enterprise shippers.

✈️ Air cargo and drone delivery: Eric Kulisch on why Air cargo rates are up about 30% year over year, with volumes up about 6%, driven by AI equipment shipments. Wing plans a $125 million Texas drone factory and expanded Walmart delivery, while Zipline raises new funding ahead of the FAA’s long-awaited drone rules.

⛽ Diesel prices and energy: John Kingston on the DOE average diesel price falling 16.5 cents, post-election moves in crude futures, Iran conflict risk, and the Strait of Hormuz.
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🔥 BRAKE CHECK went LIVE from the Stars, Stripes & White Lines Truck Show at EchoPark Speedway outside Atlanta, Georgia, thanks to the Bennett Family of Companies!

We traded the boardrooms, industry predictions, and doom-and-gloom headlines from trucking media for the REAL heartbeat of American trucking: THE PEOPLE!

In this episode:
THE EXTINCTION DEBATE: Are American trucking companies really disappearing, or is somebody selling a narrative that doesn’t match reality? REAL OWNERS, REAL STORIES, REAL TRUCKING. We sit down with the owner of Storlie Construction and the owner of Lifetime Nut Covers to hear firsthand from the people building businesses and keeping this industry rolling. PLUS A SURPRISE FOR TONY JUSTICE! The Bennett Family of Companies delivers an unforgettable moment for country music artist and trucking favorite Tony Justice!

THE INDUSTRY TEMPERATURE CHECK: We take the microphones straight to the people of trucking to find out what’s REALLY happening beyond the headlines.

No corporate talking points
No polished PR answers
No crystal balls predicting the end of American trucking.

Just real people, real businesses, and the passion that keeps this industry alive, because before you declare an entire industry DEAD, you might want to check its pulse!

Join Charles for another episode of BRAKE CHECK on FreightWaves, where we ask the questions others won’t and bring the conversations directly to the people who matter.

NOW IT’S YOUR TURN!
👇 Is the American trucking company really facing extinction, or is the industry being counted out too soon? DROP YOUR TAKE IN THE COMMENTS!

👍 LIKE if you believe American trucking is worth fighting for.

🔔 SUBSCRIBE to FreightWaves for more Brake Check episodes, hard-hitting trucking conversations, and stories from the road.

AMERICAN TRUCKING ISN’T DEAD, AND WE WENT LOOKING FOR THE PROOF
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In today’s Morning Minute, a massive RICO lawsuit filed by a coalition of carriers against brokerage giants C.H. Robinson and TQL won’t reach jury selection until April 3, 2028, 17 months away. TQL is pushing to move the case to state court in Ohio based on forum selection clauses, with a scheduling conference set for November 23. In ocean freight, China-based COSCO Shipping Holdings reported an 81% surge in third-quarter profit to about $2.58 billion, with revenue up 29% to $11.34 billion as geopolitical disruptions forced longer voyages and kept container rates elevated. Trans-Pacific revenue rose 61% on just 13% volume growth. Finally, six pallets of Nvidia hardware worth a reported $11.4 million vanished en route from Oakland to Fort Worth, part of a broader wave of data center freight thefts totaling nearly $111 million.

A note on names: the transcript appears to be auto-generated, and a few entities look garbled. I wrote “TQL” (Total Quality Logistics, which is based in Ohio) where it says “TCL,” and “COSCO” where it says “Costco,” since COSCO Shipping Holdings is the China-based container carrier. I also read “Claremont, Ohio” as Clermont County, Ohio, and left it as “state court in Ohio” in the description. Please confirm these against the source before publishing.
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In this episode of #WithSONAR, we walk through SONAR’s Intermodal pricing tool in Rate Intelligence, helping you compare truckload and intermodal rates, track market trends, and identify potential conversion savings across your network.

Learn how to:

Compare intermodal spot and contract rates against truckload pricing.

Track rate trends and domestic and international intermodal volume.

Calculate potential conversion savings using your current contract rates and annual load volume.

Analyze long-term lane-level rate and demand trends to identify opportunities to reduce transportation costs.

📩 Have questions? Reach out to cs@gosonar.com or your Account Manager.

💡 Subscribe for more quick SONAR insights!

#freight #freighttech #gosonar #sonar #softwareasaservice #logistics
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On Monday’s freight edition of FreightWaves Today, the team reflects on a week at the Up Summit and Cape Week, then dives into the day’s top transportation and supply chain stories, guest interviews, and the latest freight market data from Sonar.

In this episode:

🚀 Up Summit takeaways: Reflections on the future of aviation and aerospace, how autonomy, flying taxis, and drone delivery could reshape cargo and even where people choose to live, and why public-private partnerships and government-funded innovation matter

📰 Top headlines:

BNSF’s third quarter earnings rise as revenue growth outpaces volume growth

Walmart and Zipline expand drone delivery to hundreds of new store locations

A major methamphetamine seizure in a South Texas produce truck highlights cargo security challenges

📦 Freight market check-in: Is the consumer pulling back, and what are rejections and demand telling us about peak season? Plus a look at the impact of the CSX tech outage and New Mexico flooding on rail volumes

🎙️ Guest interview: Heidi Wyle, founder and CEO of Venti (an MIT spinout), on autonomous trucks for ports, rail yards, and other supply chain facilities, how they’re deployed, and when over-the-road autonomy could arrive

📊 Sonar update: New flatbed and LTL data in Truckload National Insights, tender rejections, demand trends, spot and contract rates, and a preview of Sonar’s upcoming MCP for accessing data through your AI tools

🔒 Fraud Watch (brought to you by Highway): The latest on freight fraud and stolen load trends

🤖 Guest interview: Adrian Smith, co-founder and CEO of Ripple, on tariffs and trade after the midterms, doing logistics business in the Middle East, why customs work is a strong fit for AI, and how to deploy the right AI model for the right job

📅 Coming up: Tomorrow’s Fuel Tuesday episode with John Kingston on the state of the energy markets
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