Canadian Trailer Makers Hit With US Anti-Dumping Duties

Good morning. It's Monday, August 3rd — trade duties, a record quarter for CPKC, and a broker-liability reckoning open the week.

Canadian trailer makers dodged the worst of Washington's new anti-dumping duties, drawing a preliminary rate far below what U.S. petitioners sought. CPKC posted a record quarter and Schneider raised its outlook, both pointing to a truckload market still tightening on the supply side. And the fallout from the US$604-million C.H. Robinson verdict is already reshaping how brokers decide which carriers to hire.

U.S. sets preliminary anti-dumping duty on Canadian trailers

Canadian trailer manufacturers avoided the worst-case tariffs they feared, with Truck News reporting that the U.S. Commerce Department set a preliminary anti-dumping duty of 4.29% on cooperating Canadian producers — well below the 31.16% margin alleged in the original petition. Commerce also dropped its parallel subsidy investigation into Canada, leaving Canadian makers facing only the anti-dumping case, while non-cooperating firms drew a 44.86% rate. For fleets sourcing trailers, the modest headline rate limits the cost passed through on Canadian-built equipment, even as the case heads toward a final decision.

CPKC sets a second-quarter revenue record

FreightWaves reports that Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) set a second-quarter revenue record, lifting operating income 10% to US$1.06 billion as revenue rose 13%. Chief Executive Keith Creel credited the strength of grain, automotive, and energy shipments and the railway's franchise uniquely connecting Canada, the U.S., and Mexico. The result gives shippers a read on cross-border volumes moving through CPKC's three-country network.

Schneider raises outlook, says rate recovery is just beginning

Schneider National raised its full-year earnings outlook after beating second-quarter expectations, FreightWaves reports, telling analysts the truckload market is "only in the early stages of rate recovery." The carrier booked double-digit contract-rate increases on one-way network renewals and said it will use a capacity-constrained market to recoup years of cost inflation. For Canadian carriers pricing southbound freight, Schneider's stance signals more room for rates to climb into the second half.

Brokers rewrite carrier vetting after the $604M verdict

Brokers are moving to overhaul how they vet carriers — Overdrive reports the shift follows the US$604-million negligent-hiring verdict against C.H. Robinson and a Supreme Court ruling that stripped brokers of a long-standing liability shield. Lawyers expect a move toward "whitelisting" defensible carriers, turning a documented safety record into a competitive asset for fleets chasing freight. The change reaches every third-party logistics (3PL) provider tendering loads for Canadian shippers moving into the U.S.

Canadian diesel — national average: C$2.30/L

Halifax: C$2.41 | Montreal: C$2.58 | Toronto: C$2.21 | Calgary: C$2.03 | Vancouver: C$2.54

Prices were mixed against Friday's readings: Halifax jumped six cents to lead the gainers while Toronto eased two cents, leaving the national average unchanged at C$2.30. The Vancouver–Calgary spread held at 51 cents per litre.

U.S. diesel — American Automobile Association (AAA) national average: US$5.36/gal

The AAA on-highway diesel average ticked up a penny to US$5.36 a gallon, holding near recent highs.

Canada shelves a national automated-truck pilot

The Canadian Automated Vehicle Initiative (CAVI) has cancelled its proposed TransCanada Automated Truck Project — a planned Halifax-to-Vancouver driverless demonstration — after Transport Canada declined to endorse it. Truck News reports the group concluded that without federal backing it could not secure the partners and funding the project needed. The reversal signals a cautious federal posture on autonomous freight that Canadian carriers weighing the technology will want to factor into planning.

Freightliner Cascadia production leaves the Pacific Northwest

Truck News reports that Daimler Truck North America will move Freightliner and Western Star production out of Portland, Oregon, to plants in North and South Carolina by year-end, cutting about 375 jobs. The company will keep its North American headquarters and engineering operations in Portland, where it has built trucks since the 1940s. Because the Cascadia is a workhorse across Canadian fleets, the consolidation is worth watching for lead times and parts availability.

FedEx scales up robotic trailer loading

FreightWaves is reporting that FedEx is expanding its use of Dexterity's robotic trailer-loading system, moving the technology from pilot testing into larger-scale production at its Hagerstown, Maryland, hub. The parcel giant, which loads tens of thousands of trailers a day, is betting on automation to ease one of the most physically demanding jobs on the dock. For Canadian fleets watching labour costs and dock throughput, automated loading is a signal of where terminal operations are heading.

Amerit adds its second Canadian shop this year

Amerit Fleet Solutions has acquired Mississauga-based Triple Diamond Truck and Trailer Repair, per Truck News, its second Canadian purchase this year after picking up Pro Reefer in the spring. The deal folds in a 16-bay, Ontario-certified shop and deepens the maintenance provider's presence in the Greater Toronto Area. For carriers, continued consolidation among fleet-maintenance providers is worth tracking for its effect on service capacity and pricing.

Canadian firm Roshel to buy International's Ohio plant, cutting 1,300 jobs

More than 1,300 workers at International Motors' Springfield, Ohio, facilities will lose their jobs this fall, Truck News reports, once the plants are sold to Canadian defence-vehicle maker Roshel around October 2. Brampton, Ontario-based Roshel plans to use the century-old site as a U.S. hub for commercial, special, and armoured vehicle production. For the Canadian manufacturer, the deal marks a significant expansion into U.S. defence and commercial vehicle manufacturing.

When a Quebec fleet owner spotted diesel charges from Arkansas and Nevada on fuel cards his trucks had never used, it triggered a roughly US$5,000 loss his company ended up absorbing — while another Quebec carrier hit the same way recovered everything by reporting the fraud fast. The piece uses both cases to show how quickly fuel-card fraud is evolving and why a supplier's reimbursement window can decide whether a carrier eats the loss. It's a practical read for anyone managing fuel-card exposure on cross-border lanes, where charges can surface in states a truck never visited.

Read the full analysis at Truck News.

According to a Spring 2026 survey from Conversion Interactive Agency and People. Data. Analytics. (PDA), 58.1% of professional drivers say they are currently looking for a new job — up from 46.8% a year earlier.