U.S. rail traffic decline drags on

U.S. railroads logged 516,096 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending June 18, a 6.3 percent decrease compared with the same week last year, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) announced yesterday.

Total carloads for the week fell 8.5 percent to 250,748 units, while weekly intermodal volume dropped 4.2 percent to 265,348 containers and trailers compared with the same week in 2015.

Three of 10 carload groups posted an increase for the week. They were grain, up 24.3 percent to 22,711 carloads; miscellaneous carloads, up 16.8 percent to 10,454 carloads; and motor vehicles and parts, up 0.1 percent to 18,700 carloads.

Commodity groups logging decreases for the week were led by petroleum and petroleum products, down 24.8 percent to 10,627 carloads. Coal was down 20.6 percent to 75,606 carloads; and metallic ores and metals fell 8.9 percent to 22,944 carloads.

Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 24 weeks of 2016 was 11,952,867 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 8 percent compared with traffic during the same period a year ago.

Canadian railroads posted 67,059 carloads for the week, down 13.2 percent, and 57,744 intermodal units, down 7.9 percent compared with the same week in 2015. For the first 24 weeks of 2016, Canadian railroads reported cumulative rail traffic volume of 3,062,509 carloads, containers and trailers, down 7.8 percent.

Mexican railroads logged 16,916 carloads for the week, down 4.1 percent compared with the same week last year, and 10,945 intermodal units, down 5.7 percent. For the first 24 weeks of the year, Mexican railroads' cumulative volume clocked in at 650,146 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 0.2 percent from the same point last year.