Carrier Pay Jumps 22.8% in H1 2026 as Hormuz Closure Hits Auto Transport
Bohemia, N.Y. – September 13, 2026 -- Carrier pay per mile for U.S. car shipping rose 22.8% year over year in the first half of 2026, while the prices consumers paid climbed only 14.6% over the same period, according to a new data report from SGT Auto Transport covering 30 months of shipment records.
The report, The State of Auto Transport 2026, draws on organically acquired shipment data from January 2024 through June 2026, spanning all 49 U.S. states and 1,581 distinct state-to-state lanes in the most recent 12 months. Rate figures are mix-adjusted to a fixed distance profile.
Carrier pay accelerated sharply from March, the month the Strait of Hormuz closed
Carrier pay ran 9.2% above the prior year in January and 11.7% in February, then jumped to 14.9% in March, 32.8% in May and 34.7% in June -- a trajectory the report ties to the Strait of Hormuz closure that same month.