EASE Logistics Joins Panel on Rising Truckload Rates

DUBLIN, Ohio, Sept. 23, 2026 /CourierPR/ -- Truckload rates have jumped 35% or more year over year, and carriers are starting to walk away from loads rather than honor them. This situation has prompted Brian Kuramoto, strategic account director at EASE Logistics (EASE), to address the issue at the Journal of Commerce's Inland Distribution Conference in Chicago. The conference, which runs from September 28 through 30 at the Westin Chicago River North, will feature a panel discussion on the topic, titled "Trucking I: Pricing the Inflection." The panel, which includes Chris Caplice of DAT Freight & Analytics, James Roe of AlixPartners, Steve Wells of Schneider, and Dan Ronan of S&P Global, will explore how much further truckload rates can climb and whether contract pricing will continue to chase spot rates upward. They will also discuss whether a new equilibrium can be established across capacity and demand as 2027 quickly approaches, or if the pressure continues to build.

EASE Logistics, one of the largest privately held logistics companies in Columbus, Ohio, founded in 2014 by Peter Coratola Jr., has grown into a nationally recognized logistics provider known for its innovation, service, and proprietary technology. The company is an eight-time Inc. 5000 honoree and was named the No. 1 transportation company on Fortune's 2023 list of America's Most Innovative Companies. EASE has built its brokerage and warehousing operations around the volatility of the freight market, matching freight to a dense, pre-vetted carrier network rather than relying on the spot market to fill gaps when conditions shift.

Kuramoto, who spends his days helping shippers balance service, cost, capacity, and market swings, will be part of the panel discussion. He believes that simply stating "Rates are going up" isn't much of a strategy. The harder question is what shippers can actually do about it. Market swings like this one reward the shippers who plan ahead, make decisions based on data, and invest in carrier relationships that last longer than a single cycle. Kuramoto is looking forward to a candid conversation with the panel about where the market is headed and how shippers can stay ahead of it.

Fewer carriers are willing to honor contracted rates when spot pricing runs hotter, forcing shippers to renegotiate mid-cycle or risk losing capacity altogether. EASE has built its brokerage and warehousing operations around that volatility, matching freight to a dense, pre-vetted carrier network rather than relying on the spot market to fill gaps when conditions shift. This approach puts EASE squarely in the middle of the conversation the industry expert panel is set up to have.

Coratola Jr., President, CEO, and Founder of EASE Logistics, believes that shippers who built their networks for a market that no longer exists are the ones struggling right now. The ones getting ahead are treating capacity like a strategy instead of a line item, and they started doing that well before rates spiked. That's the difference between reacting to a market and actually running one. It's not complicated, but it takes discipline.