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For the first time since third-quarter 2000, rail-car orders hit five digits, totaling 10,135 in the third quarter, according to statistics recently released by American Railway Car Institute Committee of Railway Progress Institute.


Car orders rose about 45 percent compared with 6,973 second-quarter orders, and soared a whopping 384 percent compared with 2,637 first-quarter orders.


Quarterly car deliveries increased, too, rising 18.5 percent to 4,925 compared with 4,155 second-quarter deliveries, and 27.8 percent compared with 3,855 first-quarter deliveries.


Because orders are outpacing deliveries at an accelerated clip, the third-quarter car backlog of 14,491 represents car builders' highest total since first-quarter 2001's 19,991 backlog. The quarterly total jumped 56.2 percent compared with a 9,281 second-quarter backlog and 125 percent compared with a 6,443 first-quarter backlog.