SONAR launches STVI and STRI to illuminate truckload tender trends

SONAR, the freight-market analytics platform from FreightWaves, has introduced two new tender-based metrics designed to sharpen visibility into truckload market dynamics: the SONAR Truckload Volume Index (STVI) and the SONAR Truckload Rejection Index (STRI). Built from aggregated electronic tender and EDI data, these indexes translate millions of shipment offers and carrier responses into actionable supply-and-demand signals for shippers, carriers and brokers.

The STVI measures relative changes in truckload tender volumes over time, offering a timely view of demand spikes or slowdowns that can precede shifts in spot and contract pricing. In contrast, the STRI captures the rate at which carriers are rejecting tendered loads, a leading indicator of capacity tightness or carrier selectivity. Together, the pair provides a two-dimensional perspective: STVI shows how many loads are being offered, while STRI reflects carriers’ willingness to accept them.

For logistics and procurement teams, these indexes are useful for short-term capacity planning and rate negotiation. A rising STVI paired with an increasing STRI typically signals tightening capacity and upward pressure on spot rates; the opposite pattern can indicate easing market conditions. Freight brokers and asset-based carriers can also use the signals to adjust fleet deployment, bidding strategies and lane focus.

SONAR’s new measures are distributed through its platform and can be integrated into dashboards, alerts and historical analyses. The company emphasizes the indexes’ frequency and granularity—delivering near real-time updates and the ability to segment by lane, region or equipment type—to help users detect localized disruptions or seasonal patterns.

Industry analysts say tender-based indicators complement traditional metrics such as spot rates, load-to-truck ratios and fuel prices by providing earlier detection of shifts in market behavior. As the freight market continues to grapple with cyclicality, labor constraints and intermittent demand shocks, tools like the STVI and STRI aim to give market participants clearer, faster signals to inform operational and commercial decisions.

SONAR’s rollout underscores the growing value of tender-level data in freight analytics and points to broader adoption of granular indicators as standard inputs for pricing and capacity strategy.