U.S.-flag Great Lakes shipping dips slightly in July

In addition to being a slight year-over-year decrease, last month’s shipments trailed July’s long-term average by 8.4 percent, the Lake Carriers’ Association said.    A total of 9.7 million tons of cargo were moved by U.S.-flagged freighters on the Great Lakes last month, a drop of 1.5 percent compared to a year ago, according to the organization representing companies operating vessels on the lakes.
   In addition to being a slight year-over-year decrease, last month’s shipments trailed July’s long-term average by 8.4 percent, according to data from the Lake Carriers’ Association.
   Of the cargos shipped, iron ore for steelmaking totaled five million tons, an increase of 8.7 percent compared to a year ago, according to Carriers’ Association data, but coal loadings slipped 16.7 percent to 1.4 million tons.
   Limestone cargos hauled also declined; last month’s total was 2.8 million tons, a drop of 2.6 percent compared to a year ago.
   The year-over-year total for U.S.-flag cargos was 40.3 million tons, Carriers’ Association figures show, which was a drop of 95,000 tons from the same point in 2016.
   YTD iron ore shipments rose 6.3 percent to 22.9 million tons, but coal cargos have dipped 2.4 percent to six million tons. The 9.3 million tons of aggregate, fluxstone and scrubber stone shipped represent a decrease of 10.2 percent.