Challenges continue to persist for companies in the trucking and transportation industry. It’s a theme that permeates throughout many industries and sectors, as economic uncertainty abounds on a broad scale, but for these companies, the headwinds are nothing new. For nearly the last two years, the trucking industry has contended with a significant downturn due to decreased shipper demand.
“What’s frustrating for many companies is that 2025 was the year that things were anticipated to turn around for the industry and demand would start to grow, and that has not yet materialized,” said Zachary Bullock, market leader for PNC Commercial Banking in Central Pennsylvania. “Shipping demand still hasn’t rebounded from levels we saw coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic. For many companies that are running out of liquidity stemming from that era, the question now is, when are we going to start to see a lift in demand, or is this environment just the new normal?”
International trade policy may be playing a role in the lag in industry recovery. Lack of clarity around the nature and extent of proposed tariffs is creating considerable uncertainty for importers, and any significant increase in costs resulting from imposed tariffs could translate to diminished demand in the market, creating further headwinds for trucking companies.
“Adding to the complication is the fact that many companies have put off capex spending over the last couple of years while waiting for the industry to rebound. Now their equipment is two years old, and what was on average a three-year life span has become five years. Companies are having to start thinking about replenishing it, in a market in which they can’t clearly see the future,” said Steven Preze, group manager for PNC Commercial Banking in Chicago. “A lot of companies are unsure if they should go ahead and make the growth capex investment for new trucks, or if they should instead spend on only maintenance capex to replace the fleet they currently need.”
Labor issues are another important consideration, as many trucking and transportation companies continue to struggle to attract and retain skilled labor. “One of the biggest competitive advantages and disadvantages of businesses that are doing well in this backdrop is whether they’re able to keep their people. Finding strong driver talent is very hard, and retaining it is even harder,” said Ed Brown, market leader for PNC Commercial Banking in Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey.
While it remains to be seen if a rebound is ultimately on the horizon for the trucking and transportation industry, staying in close contact with banking advisors can help provide some degree of firmer footing amid the uncertainty. “Being able to have informed discussions about interest rates is really important, as these companies live by capex spend and determining when the right time is to buy. There are strategies they can employ to mitigate interest rate risk and working with a bank to model what the best approach might be can provide a lot of value,” said Bullock. “The bottom line is that no one knows exactly how things are going to play out in the next few months. But in PNC Commercial Banking, we’re committed to staying informed and connected each step of the way so we can help clients make important decisions.”
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