U.S. rail traffic fell in November's first week

U.S. freight-rail traffic got off to a slow start this month. Railroads logged 515,269 carloads and intermodal units for the week ending Nov. 9, down 5.9 percent compared with the same week in 2018, according to Association of American Railroads (AAR) data.

Carloads for the week totaled 248,905 units, down 5.1 percent, while intermodal volume totaled 266,364 containers and trailers, down 6.7 percent.

Only one of the 10 carload commodity groups that AAR tracks every week posted an increase: Grain inched up by 342 carloads to 21,855.

Commodity groups posting decreases included coal, down 9,577 carloads to 75,180; miscellaneous carloads, down 843 carloads to 10,944; and petroleum and petroleum products, down 741 carloads to 12,617.

Meanwhile, Canadian railroads reported 83,174 carloads for the week, down 5.5 percent, and 68,361 intermodal units, down 5.9 percent year over year. Mexican railroads reported 20,097 carloads for the week, up 2.8 percent, and 17,987 intermodal units, down 5.5 percent.

Through the first 45 weeks of 2019 versus the same period in 2018:
• U.S. railroads logged combined traffic of 23,325,862 carloads and intermodal units, down 4.4 percent;
• Canadian railroads reported combined volume of 6,824,664 carloads, containers and trailers, up 0.4 percent;
• Mexican railroads posted 1,701,992 carloads and intermodal containers and trailers, down 2.7 percent; and
• North American railroads hauled a combined 31,852,518 carloads and intermodal units, down 3.4 percent.