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XPO riding manufacturing recovery wave. The LTL carrier is experiencing growth in industrial markets, which contributed to its Q2 tonnage-per-day gains, according to Chief Strategy Officer Ali Faghri. Published Aug. 14, 2026 Dive brief: * The tonnage growth that XPO experienced in recent months coincides with the rebounding manufacturing sector, Chief Strategy Officer Ali Faghri said in an interview with Trucking Dive. He added the rebounding industrial sector appears to be "still in the early innings of a multi-year demand upcycle." * Faghri's optimism is based on the Institute for Supply Management's Purchasing Managers' Index for manufacturing, which in July marked seven consecutive months of expansion. He sees this as a good sign that manufacturing is growing, not contracting which bodes well for trucking. * "When we speak with a lot of customers, there's clearly a lot of pent up demand from multiple years of depressed capex," Faghri said. "What we're hearing from them is that it is more bullishness on the demand outlook here, not just in the back half of the year, but also as we head into 2027." Dive insight: XPO credited the recovering industrial sector for its North American LTL segment posting Q2 revenues of $1.43 billion, up 15.2% year over year. LTL shipments per day also increased 2.8% YoY and tonnage per day also improved 1% from a year ago. CEO Mario Harik said during the company's Q2 earnings call July 30 that manufacturing has been starting to build momentum, following sluggishness that persisted for three years. For XPO, April tonnage was down 1.5% YoY but improved 0.5% in May, Faghri noted. By June, the number increased 4%, and in July, the carrier saw both shipments and tonnage per day increases exceeding 6% YoY. But XPO wasn't alone in reporting improving business conditions in Q2. LTL carriers Saia and TFI International's LTL segment, featuring TForce Freight, also reported increases in both metrics. ArcBest's asset-based segment, featuring ABF Freight, reported a significant increase in tonnage. There are indications manufacturing growth may be sustainable as the ISM's new orders and backlog metrics both were in expansion territory for the seventh straight month in July. The ISM's other demand indicator, new export orders, flipped from contraction to expansion in July, while the customers' inventories index showed "too low" inventory, a trend that's been steady for nearly two years. Faghri told Trucking Dive the carrier added 2,700 new local customers in Q2 with much of that business on the industrial side. He added the carrier's Q2 damage claims ratio was below 0.2%, a record low for the company, which also helped it secure new business. "Overall, LTL is about two-thirds industrial," he said. "It's relatively broad-based in terms of the type of customer that we're winning." Faghri said XPO is well positioned to gain more business in a recovering freight market. Its decision to acquire 28 service centers through the Yellow Corp. bankruptcy auction has given the carrier over 30% excess door capacity, "which is exactly where we want to be at the trough of the cycle," he said. Even with other large name competitors including FedEx Freight and Amazon Supply Chain Services seeking a bigger share of the LTL segment, Faghri is confident in XPO's growth strategy. He added the carrier covers 99% of U.S. zip codes as well as Canada and Mexico. XPO has around 19,000 doors today, Faghri said. "I think ultimately when you look at us, we have one of the largest networks in the LTL industry," he said. "So ultimately, we think our network and our service is differentiated versus the competition and so overall, we don't see those new entrants really impacting our strategy or our ability to continue to grow and support our customers over the next few years."

XPO appoints Jonas Svedlund as chief legal officer. XPO (NYSE: XPO), a leading provider of freight transportation in North America, today announced that Jonas Svedlund has joined the company as chief legal officer, effective immediately. He will lead the company's legal and compliance functions, including corporate governance and commercial matters. Mario Harik, chairman and chief executive officer of XPO, said, "Jonas is an accomplished executive who will help advance our strategic priorities. He brings deep legal expertise and a proven ability to partner with organizational leaders at every level. He is an excellent addition to our leadership team and I'm pleased to welcome him to XPO." Svedlund most recently served as deputy general counsel for Thermo Fisher Scientific, where he oversaw the company's corporate and commercial legal functions. Earlier, he held various executive roles during more than a decade with General Electric, including serving as general counsel for two separate GE businesses. He began his career as a corporate attorney with Sullivan & Cromwell. Svedlund holds a juris doctor degree from Harvard Law School and a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley. About XPO XPO, Inc. (NYSE: XPO) is a leader in asset-based less-than-truckload (LTL) freight transportation in North America. The company's customer-focused organization efficiently moves 16 billion pounds of freight per year, enabled by its proprietary technology. XPO serves 55,000 customers with 586 locations and 38,000 employees in North America and Europe, and is headquartered in Greenwich, Conn., USA. Visit xpo.com for more information, and connect with XPO on LinkedIn, Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube.

XPO's Q2 earnings beat expectations behind strong LTL performance. July 30, 2026 By Sunny Pamnani News XPO blew past analysts' expectations for the second quarter. A better freight mix and numerous AI-fueled efficiency initiatives produced record operating results in its less-than-truckload unit. XPO (NYSE: XPO) reported second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.70, which was 23 cents ahead of the consensus estimate and 65 cents higher year over year. The adjusted EPS number excluded transaction and restructuring costs among other items. It included a 6-cent tailwind from gains on real estate sales. Consolidated revenue of $2.36 billion was 13% higher y/y and $85 million better than expectations. Less-than-truckload revenue increased 15% y/y to $1.43 billion. Revenue was 5% higher excluding fuel surcharges. (Diesel prices were roughly 50% higher y/y in the quarter.) Tonnage increased 1% y/y with yield up 14% (4% higher excluding fuel surcharges). A 3% increase in daily shipments and a 2% decline in weight per shipment formed the tonnage increase. Daily tonnage was up 4.5% from the first quarter. A 1% increase in length of haul along with the lighter shipment weights were tailwinds to the yield calculation (revenue per hundredweight) in the quarter. XPO has been taking market share among local accounts (SMBs), which typically have lighter shipments but produce better margins. Both yield and revenue per shipment (excluding fuel) improved y/y and sequentially, which was in line with management's guidance. The LTL unit recorded a 79.9% adjusted operating ratio (inverse of operating margin), which was 300 basis points better y/y and 400 bps better than the first quarter. The result was 100 bps better than management's guidance. Revenue per shipment outpaced adjusted cost per shipment by nearly 400 bps in the quarter. XPO's European transportation segment reported a 10% y/y increase in revenue to $927 million. Adjusted EBITDA of $48 million was 9% higher y/y. It has added sales associates to grow into select verticals while removing some structural costs. It still plans to sell the unit to make XPO a truly pure-play LTL company. Shares of XPO were up 2.8% in pre-market trading on Thursday. The stock is up 44% year-to-date. XPO will host a call at 8:30 a.m. EDT on Thursday to discuss second-quarter results. Why it matters? XPO is one of a few publicly traded LTL carriers. Its quarterly results provide insight into a subsegment of trucking where few public datasets exist.