Russian trucking companies have begun warning clients of rate increases of at least 10%, the Russian business daily Kommersant reported, citing industry participants.
“Today we received notification from our fellow truckers of a rate increase: starting July 1, they announced a minimum increase of 10%. I would assume that’s not the ceiling,” said Tatyana Patuzhanya, one of the founders of the Sigma logistics and transport group.
Igor Rebelsky, founder of VIG Trans, said domestic shipping rates are currently “relatively stable” but that “the conditions for their increase have formed.” Trip planning has grown more complicated, he said, because of fueling restrictions and supply disruptions at gas stations in the regions — costs that carriers are factoring into their rates, which have risen by roughly 5%.
Georgy Vlastopulo, head of the logistics company Optimalog, said rising fuel costs over the past week and a half have pushed freight shipments from China up by an average of $700 per trip. On the China route, he added, daily mileage has dropped from 600–700 kilometers (373–435 miles) to 500 kilometers (311 miles).
Andrei Zelinsky, CEO of Pontis Expedition, said carriers are reluctant to take long-distance orders because of uncertainty over fuel availability and “prefer orders within urban agglomerations, within a radius of 100–150 kilometers (62–93 miles).” NC Logistic said carriers are either refusing orders altogether or significantly inflating their prices.
Market participants surveyed by Kommersant said there is no real alternative to trucking. In their view, it holds an edge over rail freight in flexibility and delivery times — and since “the entire transport industry has faced the same problem, there is nowhere for cargo to go.”
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