FedEx Freight Flies Solo as USPS Sounds Cash Alarm

Good morning. It's Friday, June 26th — capacity and cost pressure run through nearly every headline today.

FedEx Freight opens its books for the first time as an independent carrier, while a deepening cash crisis at the United States Postal Service puts contract mail haulers on notice. Regulators stayed busy on both sides of the border, from a waste hauler joining the legal fight over non-domiciled licences to more US states closing the car-truck speed gap. Closer to home, Ontario broke ground on a long-promised road into the Ring of Fire, and we round out the day with a Mack long-haul play, a private-equity bet on cross-border brokerage, and a federal case that drags cargo theft back to basics.

FedEx Freight posts first results as a standalone carrier

FreightWaves reports that FedEx Freight, in its first earnings report since spinning off from FedEx Corp. on June 1, grew fiscal fourth-quarter revenue 4.8% to US$2.4 billion on higher fuel surcharges and weight. The newly independent less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier issued guidance of 4% to 6% revenue growth through year-end and adjusted earnings of US$2.40 to US$2.60 per share, even as executives flagged softer demand. For Canadian shippers, the carrier's standalone "hunting" strategy — chasing data-centre, grocery and healthcare freight — signals where one of the largest cross-border LTL networks intends to compete next.

Mail haulers warned they could stop getting paid as USPS cash crisis deepens

Trucking companies that move mail under contract could eventually see payments halted, with Overdrive reporting that Postmaster General David Steiner told a US Senate committee the United States Postal Service (USPS) is "out of cash" and surviving by deferring retirement-fund obligations. Steiner pointed to roughly US$31 billion in cumulative defaults through fiscal 2025 against about US$8.9 billion in remaining cash, warning that contract transportation providers are among those who would go unpaid if Congress does not act. Direct Canadian exposure is limited, but the scale of the USPS surface-transportation network makes it a bellwether for North American contract freight.

Ontario breaks ground on road into the Ring of Fire

Ontario has started construction on a 107-kilometre all-season road into the mineral-rich Ring of Fire region, Truck News reports, the first link in a planned network of more than 500 kilometres of northern roads. Led by Webequie First Nation, the Webequie Supply Road is now slated to open by November 2030 — about four years ahead of the original timeline — and will involve 31 water crossings, six bridges and a maintenance facility. For carriers, it points to years of heavy-civil hauling and, eventually, sustained freight demand tied to critical-minerals development in Ontario's Far North.

Canadian diesel — National average: C$1.87

Halifax: C$1.87 | Montreal: C$2.11 | Toronto: C$1.76 | Calgary: C$1.64 | Vancouver: C$2.12

US diesel — National on-highway average: US$4.83/gal, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Waste hauler joins legal fight over non-domiciled CDL ban

Florida-based Waste Pro USA has entered the court battle over the federal ban on non-domiciled commercial driver's licences (CDLs), arguing the restriction strips it of trained, authorized drivers it cannot quickly replace. Overdrive reports the company's filing raises a logical argument the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) had not directly addressed, adding industry weight to a challenge that until now leaned on unions and individual drivers. Non-domiciled licensing remains a live capacity question on both sides of the border, where tighter screening continues to thin the available driver pool.

More US states move to close the car-truck speed gap

Several US states are easing or eliminating differential speed limits that force trucks to run slower than surrounding traffic, per Land Line: Idaho will let trucks match car speeds on rural interstates from July 1, Iowa raises its default limit, and a Missouri bill awaits the governor's signature. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) backs uniform speeds, arguing that smaller speed gaps mean fewer dangerous interactions. The trend runs opposite to Ontario's latest move, which widens the car-truck differential by lifting limits to 110 km/h for cars while holding trucks at 105 — a contrast worth watching for carriers running both sides of the border.

NACFE warns technician shortage could slow new-powertrain adoption

Truck News reports that a new study from the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) warns the industry's shortage of skilled technicians is becoming a bigger obstacle as fleets run a widening mix of diesel, battery-electric, hydrogen and natural-gas trucks. Each powertrain demands different diagnostic and repair skills, stretching maintenance teams already short on qualified hands. For Canadian fleets weighing electrification, the finding is a reminder that the harder constraint may be servicing new equipment, not buying it.

Mack pushes deeper into long-haul with Pioneer and redesigned Anthem

Mack Trucks is pressing harder into the over-the-road market — FreightWaves reports the Volvo Group brand has paired its new aerodynamic Pioneer tractor with a redesigned Anthem, claiming fuel-economy gains of up to 11% and 10% respectively. The two share a cab platform but split duties, with the Pioneer targeting long-haul sleeper work and an integrated electric parking cooler as Mack aims to lift its roughly 2% share of the highway segment. Mack showed the Pioneer at Truck World in Mississauga this spring, and the lineup is sold and serviced across Canada.

Long Beach imports surge 40% as holiday restocking starts early

The Port of Long Beach moved 842,030 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in May, up 31.7% year over year and its third-busiest May on record, FreightWaves reports, with imports alone up 40%. Much of the jump reflects an easy comparison with last year's tariff-driven slowdown, and forecasters expect volumes to ease later in the summer. For cross-border carriers, an earlier West Coast peak can pull transcontinental and drayage capacity forward with it.

Quad-C takes majority stake in cross-border broker Armstrong

FreightWaves reports that private-equity firm Quad-C has acquired a majority stake in Charlotte-based Armstrong Transport Group, a freight brokerage running more than 150 independent agent offices across the United States and Canada and a network of over 80,000 vetted carriers. Armstrong's leadership stays in place, with the capital aimed at technology and further acquisitions as the firm pushes toward US$2 billion in annual revenue. The deal is another sign of buyers paying up for cross-border brokerage capacity rather than building it.

Cargo theft was supposed to be migrating online — carrier impersonation, spoofed emails, double-brokering. A new federal case is a reminder that the low-tech version never left: organized crews still working freight corridors for unattended trailers and sleeping drivers, moving whole loads the old-fashioned way. It is a useful corrective for any fleet that has poured its security budget into digital fraud while the yard and the rest stop stayed exposed.

Read the full piece at FreightWaves.

According to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data reported by Transport Topics, consumer prices rose 4.1% year over year in May — a three-year high — keeping upward pressure on the fuel, equipment and insurance costs that carriers can least control.