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A freight rate (historically and in
ship chartering Chartering is an activity within the shipping industry whereby a shipowner hires out the use of their vessel to a charterer. The contract between the parties is called a charterparty (from the French ''"charte partie"'', or "parted document"). T ...
simply freight) is a
price A price is the (usually not negative) quantity of payment or compensation given by one party to another in return for goods or services. In some situations, the price of production has a different name. If the product is a "good" in the c ...
at which a certain
cargo Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including trans ...
is delivered from one point to another. The price depends on the form of the cargo, the
mode of transport Mode of transport is a term used to distinguish between different ways of transportation or transporting people or goods. The different modes of transport are air, water, and land transport, which includes rails or railways, road and off-road t ...
(
truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...
,
ship A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished ...
,
train In rail transport, a train (from Old French , from Latin , "to pull, to draw") is a series of connected vehicles that run along a railway track and Passenger train, transport people or Rail freight transport, freight. Trains are typically pul ...
,
aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...
), the
weight In science and engineering, the weight of an object is the force acting on the object due to gravity. Some standard textbooks define weight as a Euclidean vector, vector quantity, the gravitational force acting on the object. Others define weigh ...
of the cargo, and the
distance Distance is a numerical or occasionally qualitative measurement of how far apart objects or points are. In physics or everyday usage, distance may refer to a physical length or an estimation based on other criteria (e.g. "two counties over"). ...
to the delivery destination. Many shipping services, especially
air carrier An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in which ...
s, use
dimensional weight Dimensional weight, also known as volumetric weight, is a pricing technique for commercial freight transport (including courier and postal services), which uses an estimated weight that is calculated from the length, width and height of a packag ...
for calculating the price, which takes into account both weight and volume of the cargo. For example, bulk coal long-distance rates in
America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
are approximately 1 cent/ton-mile. So a 100 car train, each carrying 100 tons, over a distance of 1000 miles, would cost $100,000. On the other hand,
Intermodal container An intermodal container, often called a shipping container, is a large standardized shipping container, designed and built for intermodal freight transport, meaning these containers can be used across different Mode of transport, modes of trans ...
shipping rates depend heavily on the route taken over the weight of the cargo, just as long as the container weight does not exceed the maximum lading capacity. Prices can vary between $300-$10,000 per
Twenty foot equivalent unit The twenty-foot equivalent unit (abbreviated TEU or teu) is an inexact unit of cargo capacity, often used for container ships and container ports.Rowlett, 2004. It is based on the volume of a intermodal container, a standard-sized metal box whic ...
(TEU) depending on the supply and demand of a given route. In ship chartering, freight is the price which a charterer pays a shipowner for the use of a ship in a
voyage charter Chartering is an activity within the shipping industry whereby a shipowner hires out the use of their vessel to a charterer. The contract between the parties is called a charterparty (from the French ''"charte partie"'', or "parted document"). T ...
.


History

Freight Rate, the cost of transporting goods, is reflective of a number of factors aside from normal transportation costs. The main determining factors of freight rate are: mode of transportation (truck, ship, train, air craft), weight, size, distance, points of pickup and delivery, and the actual goods being shipped. One of the earliest forms of freight transportation was by water. Many of the earliest settlements were built along or near seacoasts and navigable inland waterways. As these settlements grew, roads and later railroads and pipelines had to be built to transport freight to and from the navigable waterways, thus connecting the inland points of pickup and delivery which could not be reached by navigable waterways. The development of roads, railroads, and even pipelines allowed for the expansion of settlements inland and away from water ways. Transportation by ships is very limited in nature. If there are no navigable waterways close to the pickup point and destination then a good will not be transported by a ship. Rarely is any good transported solely by ship; usually goods coming into ports by ship must be unloaded and transferred onto another mode of transportation i.e. truck or railcar for transportation to its final destination. With the expansion of railroad systems and the development of more efficient trucks, the transportation of freight by ships became less cost effective. Networks, of roads and train tracks which once carried freight from coastal and inland waterway ports to destinations which were not accessible by means of marine transportation, greatly expanded making freight transportation from port to port overland more efficient and more affordable than the marine transportation of freight.


How Freight Rate is Determined

The cost which a shipper (the consumer or business providing goods for shipment) or consignee (the person or company to whom commodities are shipped) is charged for the transportation of goods is determined by a number of factors. The main factors in determining the freight rate are: mode of transportation, weight, size, distance, points of pickup and delivery, and the actual goods being shipped. All of these factors play their own independent role in determining the price or rate at which the freight will be transported but they are also all interconnected. When determining which mode of transportation will be used to deliver the freight to its destination there are many things which need to be taken into consideration which will all have an effect on the freight rate. Federal, State, and Local authorities all have their own laws and regulations with regards to the size, weight, and type of freight which can be transported on their roads. Transportation of freight by Rail, Water, or air craft all have their own regulations which take into account Federal, State, and Local regulations as well as safety concerns which contribute to the rate at which freight is transported. In general, the more freight you transport, the cheaper it is. This is an important factor in the rate charged to people or companies shipping freight. There are many businesses out there whose sole purpose is to make the transportation of freight cheaper and easier for small businesses and individuals who need to move freight. * Consolidators: a firm which groups together shipments from different companies into a single shipment *
Customs Broker Custom brokers or Customs House Brokerages are working positions that may be employed by or affiliated with freight forwarders, independent businesses, or shipping lines, importers, exporters, trade authorities, and customs brokerage firms. North ...
: A person or firm, licensed by the treasury department of their country when required, engaged in entering and clearing goods through Customs for a client (importer). *
Freight Forwarder A freight forwarder, or forwarding agent, is a person or company who, for a fee organizes shipments for individuals or corporations to get goods from the manufacturer or producer to a market, customer or final point of distribution.
: A person whose business is to act as an agent on behalf of the shipper to arrange transportation services. A freight forwarder frequently makes the booking reservation. In the United States freight forwarders are licensed by the FMC as Ocean Transportation Intermediaries and are only designated freight forwarders for export shipments. * Non-Vessel-Operating Common Carrier (
NVOCC A freight forwarder, or forwarding agent, is a person or company who, for a fee organizes shipments for individuals or corporations to get goods from the manufacturer or producer to a market, customer or final point of distribution.
): A cargo consolidator in ocean trades that will buy space from a carrier and re-sell it to smaller shippers. The NVOCC issues bills of lading, publishes tariffs and otherwise conducts itself as an ocean common carrier, except that it will not provide the actual ocean or intermodal service Most of the freight shipped within the United States travels by truck or railcar, but many of the people and businesses shipping freight do not have enough of a good to fill a whole truck or rail car every time they need something shipped. Consolidators, customs brokers, freight forwarders, and NVOCC’s can be a factor in determining freight rate because of their experience, business relationships, and the volume at which they operate. These factors help keep the freight rate down for small businesses and the individual with a shipping need. In the commercial trucking industry, many shippers tender loads to freight brokers whose job it is to find qualified carriers to move the freight at an acceptable price for all parties.
Brokers A broker is a person or firm who arranges transactions between a buyer and a seller for a commission when the deal is executed. A broker who also acts as a seller or as a buyer becomes a principal party to the deal. Neither role should be confu ...
have access to a suite of technological tools to help determine the most cost-effective way to move cargo, including access to load boards. The best load boards provide rate analysis tools based on actual transactions on every lane in North America, since their databases hold a wealth of pricing information. For example,
DAT Solutions DAT Solutions, LLC, often referred to as DAT Freight & Analytics, and originally known as Dial-a-Truck, is a US-based freight exchange service ("load board") and provider of transportation information serving North America. Freight exchange ser ...
offers RateView for carriers, brokers and shippers, providing access to shippers’ contract rates and spot market (broker buy) rates. This allows brokers to analyze market demand and capacity to assure competitive pricing.


Trucking rate index

Over the past year, there has been a negative trend in freight rates. Freight prices are declining due to insufficient demand and a large number of truckers. There are several factors that influenced the transportation business as well: * COVID epidemic in China's export centers. This led to an increase in commodity prices. * The
Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
. This has led to higher fuel prices. At the same time, industrial goods still make up 70-80% of freight traffic, which will give truckers the opportunity to earn money, since manufacturing enterprises are still willing to pay for trucking. Here you can find some Freight Rates for some types of trucks and several regions. Market Overview: Trucking rates per mile 2022
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See also

*
Worldscale Worldscale is a unified system of establishing payment of freight rate for a given oil tanker's cargo. Worldscale was established in November 1952 by London Tanker Brokers’ Panel on the request of British Petroleum and Shell as an average total ...
, a unified system of establishing payment of freight rate for a given
oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crud ...
's cargo


References

{{Ship chartering Ship management Transport economics Freight transport