Spot Van Cracks $2.30/mi on the National Print — Seven Lanes Driving It and Where Rates Go Next.
DAT national van prints $2.31/mi this morning — the first time above $2.30 since November 2022. Seven lanes are doing the heavy lifting. The structural setup that produced this break is unlikely to reverse in 2026, and the contract-spot spread now favors carriers in a way procurement teams haven't seen since the post-COVID surge.
DAT's morning print: national spot van at $2.31/mi, up $0.09 WoW. First time above $2.30 since November 2022. Linehaul-only print (ex-fuel) at $1.91. The break is real, the catalysts are durable, and the procurement teams reading 2024-vintage rate ceilings out of their playbooks are about to discover the floor lifted while they weren't looking.
Seven lanes are driving the national print. None of these are surprises individually; the surprise is that all seven are firing at once.