{
  "id": 4864960,
  "title": "Transportation capacity contraction slows in August",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/01/transportation-capacity-contraction-slows-in-august",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-09-01T12:17:30.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "FreightWaves",
    "slug": "freightwaves",
    "url": "https://www.freightwaves.com/news/transportation-capacity-contraction-slows-in-august"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In August, transportation capacity contracted at the slowest rate in six months, according to the Logistics Managers' Index (LMI). This marked a significant slowdown from July's more rapid contraction. Simultaneously, transportation pricing continued to rise, reaching a new peak. The LMI return reading of 40 was 11.6 percentage points lower than July's contraction rate, which was the second-fastest contraction in the index's 10-year history. Transportation utilization increased by 5.6 points, reaching a \"robust\" growth level for the second time in five years, above 70. Despite the tightening capacity, logistics managers anticipate a tight market over the next 12 months, with readings of 43 for capacity, 71.9 for utilization, and 86.1 for pricing. Upstream companies expect significant capacity tightening, while downstream companies like retailers expect a modest increase in supply. Inventory costs continued to rise, driven by higher goods costs and warehouse rents, contributing to the start-stop pattern in inventory growth.",
  "summary": "Transportation capacity continued to contract in August, but at the slowest rate recorded in six months, while transportation pricing continued to surge, according to a monthly survey of supply chain executives. The post Transportation capacity contraction slows in August appeared first on FreightWaves .",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}