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On Oct. 21, Canadian Pacific Railway reported $65 million in third-quarter net income, a 43 percent or $49 million drop compared with the same 2001 quarter.


However, CPR officials believe third-quarter 2001 income from non-recurring items and higher foreign exchange losses on long-term debt during the recent quarter contributed to the decline, according to a prepared statement.


Excluding those items, CPR earned $108 million in quarterly net income, rising $10 million or 10 percent compared with the same 2001 period.


The railroad reported other third-quarter gains: Operating income totaled $224 million, rising $2 million, and revenue totaled $917 million, increasing $19 million compared with 2001.


In addition, CPR's quarterly operating ratio of 75.6 nearly mirrored last year's 75.3.


"CPR marked its first year as an independent company [and] our results show that we have unlocked value in CPR and met the goal of our spin-off," said CPR President and Chief Executive Officer Robert Ritchie. "We were tested by events beyond our control, including the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., economic uncertainty, and a severe drought on the Canadian prairies, but we overcame these challenges and demonstrated that CPR can perform well in adverse circumstances."


However, quarterly operating expenses rose 3 percent to $694 million, mostly because compensation and benefits increased 5 percent, CPR said.


During the year's first three quarters, the railroad recorded $370 million in net income, increasing $96 million, and $619 million in operating income, rising $39 million compared with a similar 2001 period.


CPR's operating ratio also improved during that span, decreasing 1.7 points to 77.2.