RTA: Tie purchases jumped in June

Crosstie purchases skyrocketed in June, soaring 104.5 percent from May's level to 2.7 million units, according to the Railway Tie Association's (RTA) monthly market report. On a year-over-year basis, purchases shot up 58.3 percent.

Tie production accelerated in June, too, climbing 10.3 percent from May's mark to 1.7 million units. Production also increased 6.3 percent compared with June 2013's level.

However, tie inventories fell from 16.8 million units at May's end to 15.8 million units at June's end. The inventory-to-sales ratio dipped from 0.71 in May to 0.64 in June.

Through 2014's first half, tie purchases were flat at 11.9 million units versus the same 2013 period while production at 9.4 million units declined 10.3 percent.

Meanwhile, RTA's 12-month rolling data through June shows purchases (at 24.7 million units) were climbing at a 10.6 percent annual rate and production (at 20.2 million units) was decreasing at a 12.7 percent clip.