For-hire motor carriers of freight, annual supplement: Financial statistics

The 3,400 for-hire motor carriers of freight in Canada with annual earnings of at least $1 million had operating revenues totalling $26.1 billion and operating expenses totalling $25.0 billion in 2005.

An analysis of the companies' balance sheets shows that their profitability declined in 2005. For example, their net operating revenues were just over $1 billion, down nearly 30% from 2004. This is attributable to the fact that the increase in operating expenses (+11%) outpaced the rise in operating revenues (+9%).

In addition, both short- and long-term liquidity deteriorated. The working capital ratio (a measure of short-term liquidity) fell from 1.12 in 2004 to 1.08 in 2005, and the long-term-debt-to-equity ratio (a measure of long-term liquidity) rose from 0.47 to 0.52.

Nevertheless, financial leverage remained positive, as the return on equity remained substantially higher than the return on capital employed. This means that for-hire trucking companies posted a higher return on equity than the interest rate they paid on borrowed funds, which translates into more cash flow for financing company operations.

In 2005, 76% of the equipment in service was owned, while 24% was leased.

The annual Motor Carriers of Freight Survey is a supplement to flesh out the financial profile provided by the quarterly survey. It collects data on the main elements of for-hire trucking companies' balance sheets, broken down by region of domicile, type of service and size of company.

Available on CANSIM: table 403-0003.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2742.

The annual publication Trucking in Canada (53-222-XIE, free), which contains a broader range of financial statistics derived from this survey, will be published shortly.

For general information or to order data, contact the Dissemination Unit (toll-free 1-866-500-8400; fax: 1-613-951-0009; transportationstatistics@statcan.gc.ca), Transportation Division.

For more information about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Denis Pilon (613-951-2707; fax: 613-951-0579; denis.pilon@statcan.gc.ca), Transportation Division.