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InTek Intermodal Index (III) Weekly Market Analysis

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Weekly market intelligence including the InTek Intermodal Index (tracking intermodal spot rates), along with truckload pricing, diesel trends, and railroad volumes

Updated every Thursday | Last updated: September 17, 2026 | View historical archive

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This Week at a Glance

Week ending September 14, 2026

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Intermodal Spot Rate

(excluding fuel)

▲ +1% vs. last week

▲ +6.2% vs. last year

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Truckload Spot Rate

(excluding fuel, DAT)

▼ -0.7% vs. last week 

▲ +42.2% vs. last year

 

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Diesel Fuel

(EIA National Average)

▲ +5.3% vs. last week 

▲ +68.1% vs. last year

 

 

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Intermodal Volume

(YTD vs. 2025)

U.S. ▲ +4%

North American ▲ +3.3%

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This Week's Analysis

By Rick LaGore, CEO, InTek Logistics | September 14, 2026

Analysis of the InTek Intermodal Index (III) and freight market trends

Trends in the Intermodal Transportation Spot Rate and Market

Intermodal spot resumed its climb, diesel cleared $6, and truckload eased. Intermodal spot rose 1.0% and pushed to 6.2% above last year, a new high for the year-over-year reading. Truckload spot fell 0.7%. Diesel jumped 31.8 cents to $6.285, now 68.1% above last year. Volume eased back a few tenths, with US intermodal at 3.8%.

After last week's flat print, intermodal climbed again, which answers the durability question the pause raised. The climb was consolidation instead of a top. Year-over-year at 6.2% is the firmest of the run and the reading that matters most. It tracks how far intermodal's cost base has moved, not where any single week landed. Three gains in four weeks, with the one flat week in between, is a trend building. A spike would have faded by now.

The demand picture underneath has not changed. Volume slipped a few tenths on the cumulative figures, so the seasonal surge that peak pricing implies has not reached the freight yet. Both modes sit well above last year on the annual read, even with truckload down on the week. The volume is carried by conversion and cross-border, not a broad demand lift. That gap between rising prices and flat volume is this market in one line, and it held again this week.

The more telling number sits under the fuel line. Diesel clearing $6 with a 68% year-over-year gap widens intermodal's cost advantage regardless of what the linehaul rates do week to week. When fuel moves this far, the all-in comparison shifts on fuel alone.

For shippers, the playbook holds. Price the spread on total landed cost with fuel in it. The fuel line is the largest single item in the comparison, and where diesel goes next depends on refining margins more than on crude. Watch the 3-2-1 crack spread for that read.

InTek Intermodal Index (excluding fuel):

  • Up 1% vs. prior week
  • Up 6.2% vs. prior year

The InTek Intermodal Index (III), which tracks intermodal spot rates, rose 1.0% for the week and stands 6.2% above last year - a new high for the annual reading in 2026.

The pause the week before was a step in the climb that has resumed since. The year-over-year figure clearing 6% is the marker worth holding onto. It puts intermodal's cost base firmly above a year ago, and it gives the move a durability a single strong week could not.

National Truckload Spot Rate (DAT, excluding fuel): (DAT Trendline Report)

  • Down 0.7% vs. prior week
  • Up 42.2% vs. prior year

Truckload spot eased 0.7% for the week and holds 42.2% above last year. Even with a slight narrowing, the linehaul spread remains strongly in intermodal's favor.

The premium to intermodal stays large, and truckload holding above 40% year over year keeps the mode gap wide on lanes where both compete. The weekly dip is small against a cost base that has not come down. The demand read underneath stays soft.

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Diesel Fuel (EIA):

  • $6.285/gallon
  • Up $0.318 (5.3%) vs. prior week
  • Up $2.546 (68.1%) vs. prior year

Diesel cleared $6 and set another high at $6.285 per gallon, up 31.8 cents (5.3%) on the week and up $2.546 (68.1%) on the year.

This is the second straight weekly jump, and the year-over-year gap widened to 68%, the steepest of the run. The $6 line that looked close last week is now behind us.

The driver continues primarily to sit in refining and distillate supply, not in crude. For a shipper, the 3-2-1 crack spread, not the crude price, is what to watch for where diesel goes next. Rail is roughly three times more fuel efficient than over-the-road truck on a ton-mile basis. At a 68% year-over-year diesel gap, that efficiency widens the intermodal cost advantage further and keeps marginal long-haul freight converting to rail.

(The full spreadsheet of the historical weekly price moves of diesel full can be found at https://www.eia.gov/petroleum/gasdiesel.)

 

Year-to-Date Intermodal Volume by Region and Railroad vs. 2025

North American intermodal volume runs 3.1% ahead of 2025 year to date and US volume 3.8%, both easing back a couple of tenths from last week. The step back is the tell against the pricing strength. Peak is showing up in rates and not yet in the freight, which keeps this a conversion-and-cross-border market instead of a demand-driven one.

GMXT leads the year-over-year gains at 13.4%, easing from last week but still well ahead of the group. CSX (5.5%) and BNSF (4.9%) run above the US average, with NS (4.0%) close behind. UP holds positive at 0.6% and CPKC at 1.2%, both keeping the ground they gained over the summer. CN at -2.6% remains the lone holdout below last year. The spread from strongest to weakest stays wide, and it still traces mostly to the Mexico-versus-Canada cross-border difference.

North American Intermodal

3.1%

U.S. Intermodal

3.8%

Volume by Railroad

BNSF 4.9%
CN -2.6%
CPKC 1.2%
CSX 5.5%
GMXT 13.4%
NS 4.0%
UP 0.6%

 

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Intermodal Spot Rate Trend Charts

InTek Intermodal Index (III) spot rate per mile including fuel, showing weekly trends

Intermodal Spot Rate Per Mile (Including Fuel)

  

InTek Intermodal Index (III) spot rate per mile excluding fuel, showing weekly trends

Intermodal Spot Rate Per Mile (Excluding Fuel)

 

InTek Intermodal Index (III) average intermodal spot rate per mile from 2021 to 2026 Intermodal Spot Rate Average Per Mile (2014-2026)

InTek Intermodal Index (III) average intermodal percentage rate change per mile from 2021 to 2026

Intermodal Spot Rate Y/Y % Change (2014-2026)

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What to watch next week

Three things to watch heading into the week of September 21, 2026.

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Does intermodal spot keep climbing?

Spot resumed after a flat week and pushed year-over-year past 6%. Watch whether it strings together another gain or settles again. A second leg up here would confirm the firming has room to run before peak crests.

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How far does diesel run past $6?

Diesel cleared $6 with a 68% year-over-year gap and no sign of refining relief. Watch the next EIA print and the crack spread. Every week fuel holds up here, the intermodal advantage widens and third-quarter truckload fuel exposure gets heavier. Hurricane season is still open.

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Does volume catch up to the pricing?

Rates are pricing a tightening peak while volume eased back this week. Watch whether the coming weeks bring a real seasonal lift or whether peak stays a pricing event without the freight underneath it.

Last week's scorecard

Last week we flagged three things. Here is how they played out.

  • Does intermodal spot resume or stay flat? It resumed. Spot rose 1.0% after the flat week and pushed year-over-year to 6.2%, a new high for the run. The pause was consolidation, and the climb picked back up where it left off.

  • How close does diesel get to $6? It cleared it. Diesel jumped another 31.8 cents to $6.285, a second straight weekly climb, and the year-over-year gap widened to 68%. The $6 line that looked within reach last week is behind us now.

  • Does peak actually show up in the volume? Not yet. Volume eased back a couple of tenths on the cumulative figures while intermodal climbed. The rates are moving on peak pricing while the freight underneath them holds flat. That answer has not changed in weeks.

About the InTek Intermodal Index:

The InTek Intermodal Index (III) tracks weekly domestic intermodal spot rates on a per-mile basis, both including and excluding fuel surcharges. Each week's report includes comprehensive market analysis covering truckload pricing trends, diesel fuel costs, and railroad intermodal volumes to provide context for rate movements.

Published every Thursday since 2014, the Index serves as a resource for shippers, carriers, and industry analysts tracking North American freight market trends.

Citation: InTek Intermodal Index. (2026). Weekly Intermodal Spot Rate Report. Retrieved from https://www.inteklogistics.com/spot-rates

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