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As capital becomes cheaper, competition for logistics and infrastructure assets may intensify, analysts said. (vitpho/Getty Images)

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Mergers and acquisitions in the trucking industry and elsewhere in the transportation sector are set to ramp up in 2026, according to analysts at PwC.

Reduced borrowing costs due to expectations of further interest rate cuts will allow dealmakers to revive deals that were previously deferred as well as loosening corporate purse strings previously inhibited by the ongoing freight rate recession and uncertainty.

The Federal Reserve ended 2025 with a third consecutive monthly interest rate reduction while also boosting its 2026 gross domestic product growth prognostication by half a percentage point to 2.3%. Between September 2024 and December, the Fed cut its key interest rates six times.

However, said the analysts, as capital becomes cheaper, competition for logistics and infrastructure assets may intensify.

Still, greater predictability when it comes to tariff frameworks and trade policy are boosting confidence in nearshoring, regional integration and cross-border modeling, the analysts said. Buyers are now more able to assess long-term profitability with fewer geopolitical surprises, they noted.

Freight market segments that will be especially attractive to buyers in 2026 include arenas like pharmaceuticals logistics, temperature-controlled transportation and reverse logistics.

Such niche categories align with broader consumption patterns and shifting demographic trends while also offering resilient demand profiles and embedded customer relationships, the analysts said.

That assessment came after a 2025 that already saw buyers focused on subsectors offering defensible growth, operating efficiency and exposure to high-barrier markets, they said.

Activity remains high in pharmaceutical and health care logistics, temperature-controlled logistics, dedicated transport and reverse logistics — areas tied to recurring volumes and mission-critical supply chains, they added.

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(UPS)

In November, UPS inked a $1.6 billion deal to buy Andlauer Healthcare Group, the Vaughan, Ontario-based cold chain health care logistics specialist.

UPS ranks No. 1 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in North America and No. 5 on the TT Top 100 list of the largest logistics companies. The company also ranks No. 3 on the TT Top 50 list of the largest global freight carriers.

In temperature-controlled freight deals, Hub Group’s purchase of the intermodal division of Marten Transport for $51.8 million stands out.

Oak Brook, Ill.-based Hub Group ranks No. 2 among intermodal carriers and No. 14 on the for-hire TT100.

Marten Transport ranks No. 5 among refrigerated carriers, No. 17 among intermodal carriers and No. 46 on the for-hire TT100.

The temperature-controlled deal that got away was a tie-up between US Foods and Performance Food Group.

PFG ranks No. 4 on the TT Top 100 list of the largest private carriers in North America and operates five of the top 21 food service carrier brands.

US Foods ranks No. 5 on the private TT100 and No. 2 among food service carriers.

Had the deal gone ahead, the combined entity would have leapfrogged Sysco Corp. at the top of the food service carrier table — serving restaurants, corporate offices, convenience stores, gas stations and truck stops.

PFG and US Foods entered into an information-sharing agreement Sept. 16 but mutually agreed to dissolve discussions Nov. 24.

The dedicated carrier segment saw smaller deals in 2025 following Schneider’s $390 million acquisition of Cowan Systems a year earlier.

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