After a couple months heading the wrong direction, the September Logistics Managers' Index (LMI) has things looking up - 3.6 points to be exact - to 70.2, its second-highest reading in four years. Fueling the surge is the same metric that had been scuffling - Inventory Levels - which was the biggest riser at +6.1 points to 58.9 (and comfortably back into expansion after teetering near no movement).
That move coincides with related measurements as well, with Inventory Costs rising 1.3 to 79.9, Warehousing Utilization jumping 4.7 to 64.3, and Warehousing Capacity falling a whopping 14.3 points well into contraction at 39.3. Interestingly, Warehousing Prices actually dipped 1.5 to 73.5.
So what changed on the inventory front? Authors point to a sudden increase in imports due to newfound confidence in consumer spending to close out the year, plus newer peak patterns that have shippers waiting to move products for retail until the early part of autumn.
There are plenty of warning clouds on the horizon though, as inflation is up both in the U.S. and abroad, tariffs continue to be a moving target, and - in spite of continued spending - consumer sentiment measures dipping with a pessimistic economic outlook.
Transportation Prices are above 90 (at 92.7) for the sixth time this year after rising 2.7 monthly, while Transportation Capacity fell deeper into contraction (-5.6) to 34.3 (interestingly, Transportation Utilization actually dipped 4.5 to 66.1).
The capacity picture is the other key factor driving the index highs, as a lack of options to move freight - especially in the truckload market - has become the norm this year, while a lack of space to store inventory has also been commonplace (though the Warehousing Capacity metric is at its lowest level in four and a half years). Both those areas are contributing (along with general inflation and fuel prices) to especially elevated costs - with the index's pricing metrics helping drive the overall numbers up.
For the second straight month future predictions are off slightly, with the projected September 2027 LMI coming in at 68.6 (-1 from August). Generally, the key metrics are expected to be fairly similar to where they stand now, with the notable exception that Warehousing Capacity is predicted to be 50.6. The cost metrics though, are all still looking high, while Transportation Capacity can't get out of contraction with an anticipated figure 12 months out of 37.9.
And congratulations are in order for the creators of the LMI as September marked a decade of the index. Learn more about it on our podcast with its primary author Zac Rogers, Ph.D., associate professor of Supply Chain Management at Colorado State University.
See the summary of the September 2026 Logistics Managers' Index, by the numbers:
Researchers at Arizona State University, Colorado State University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rutgers University, and the University of Nevada, Reno - in conjunction with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals (CSCMP) - issue the report. The LMI score is a combination of eight unique components that make up the logistics industry, including: inventory levels and costs, warehousing capacity, utilization, and prices, and transportation capacity, utilization, and prices.
The LMI is calculated using a diffusion index, in which any reading above 50.0 indicates that logistics is expanding; a reading below 50.0 is indicative of a shrinking logistics industry. The latest results of the LMI summarize the responses of supply chain professionals collected in September 2026.
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