Every signal pointed to an early peak season fading out by late summer. Instead, import volumes are still climbing, reshoring is quietly building a new source of domestic freight demand, and capacity, while no longer contracting as sharply, hasn’t brought costs down with it.

This edition of our news roundup looks at where that resilience is showing up most: near-record container volumes at U.S. ports, a longer-than-expected ocean peak season, a regional reshuffling in reefer freight, and the early effects of domestic manufacturing investment on LTL demand.

U.S. Container Imports Climb to Near-Record Levels

U.S. container imports hit one of the highest monthly totals on record in August, with East and Gulf Coast ports picking up an outsized share of the growth as shippers diversify away from West Coast gateways. Import sourcing is shifting too, with a growing slice of volume now coming from Southeast Asian suppliers rather than China. The gains came with a cost: every major port saw transit delays lengthen as terminals absorbed the extra volume.

Ocean Peak Season Stretches Longer Than Shippers Expected

Most forecasts had peak season winding down by now. Instead, September import volumes are tracking well above last year’s pace, pushed higher by factory disruptions in China and continued rerouting away from a constrained Panama Canal. “We thought the peak season would be mostly behind us by now, but that’s not the case,” said Jonathan Gold, the National Retail Federation’s VP for supply chain and customs policy. Port officials now expect the surge to taper by the end of the month rather than stretching into the traditional November finish.

Reefer Rates Shift as South Texas Heats Up and California Cools

Produce freight is realigning geographically. South Texas crossings have pushed noticeably higher and are holding those gains, while California’s reefer market has cooled even though rates there remain well above last year’s levels. Eastern and central lanes out of South Texas are seeing some of the strongest premiums on the board right now. For shippers managing perishable freight through this kind of regional swing, getting accurate reefer LTL quotes up front matters more than usual.

Reshoring Gives Domestic LTL Freight a New Growth Engine

A quieter trend is reshaping freight from the inside: domestic manufacturing investment has surged to nearly four times pre-pandemic levels, concentrated in semiconductors, EVs, and pharmaceuticals across the Southeast, Midwest, and I-35 corridor. Unlike the bulk container flows tied to imports, reshored production tends to move in smaller, more frequent shipments between plants and warehouses — exactly the pattern that favors LTL. It’s a shift worth understanding if your freight mix is starting to change; we break down how LTL freight classes work and why they matter for cost.

Transportation Capacity Contraction Slows, But Costs Stay High

There’s finally some relief on the capacity side. The Logistics Managers’ Index showed capacity contracting at a much slower pace in August than in July, the best reading in six months. But easier availability hasn’t translated into lower prices — transportation pricing pushed to another extreme reading, continuing a run of sharp increases that’s now shown up in four of the last five months. Capacity cratered and rates surged last month, with the relationship between capacity and price in this market not behaving the way it used to.

What a Resilient Peak Season Means for Shippers

Between a peak season that won’t quit, a reshoring trend adding new freight patterns to plan around, and pricing that’s staying stubborn even as capacity loosens, shippers have a lot of moving pieces to track heading into Q4.

At Entourage Freight Solutions, we help shippers stay ahead of exactly this kind of shifting market. Our LTL and refrigerated programs are built for the smaller, more frequent, and regionally variable shipments driving a lot of this quarter’s growth, while our full truckload and freight management services keep larger volumes moving reliably as peak season runs its course. Real-time GPS tracking and dynamic rerouting mean we can adjust the moment conditions change, so your freight doesn’t get caught flat-footed.

Request a quote to see how we can help you plan around a peak season that isn’t done yet.