AAR: U.S. rail traffic picks up steam in February

Total U.S. freight rail volumes grew 3.3 percent for the month following a 0.1 percent uptick in January, according to the latest data from the Association of American Railroads (AAR).    Total combined U.S. freight railroad traffic in February 2018 increased 3.3 percent to 2.13 million carloads and intermodal units compared with the same month a year ago, according to the latest data from the Association of American Railroads (AAR).
   U.S. railroads saw carload shipments slip 0.3 percent year-over-year to 1.03 carloads for the month, but the decline in carloads was more than offset by a 6.9 percent increase in intermodal traffic to 1.1 million containers and trailers.
   Nine of the 20 carload commodity categories tracked by AAR each month saw gains in February, including crushed stone, sand and gravel, up 6,329 carloads (7.5 percent) from the same 2017 period; chemicals, up 4,286 carloads (3.4 percent); and metallic ores, up 2,510 carloads (19.4 percent).
   Commodities that saw year-over-year declines during the month included coal, down 5,801 carloads (1.7 percent); grain, down 4,712 carloads (5.3 percent); and motor vehicles and parts, down 3,283 carloads (4.5 percent).
   AAR noted that excluding coal, carload volumes grew 0.4 percent in February 2018, and excluding coal and grain, carloads were up 1.3 percent from the same 2017 period.
   Following a 0.1 percent uptick in volumes in January, total U.S. rail traffic for the first two months of 2018 has risen 1.5 percent to 4.7 million carloads and intermodal units, as carload traffic slid 2 percent to 2.25 million carloads and intermodal shipments rose 5 percent to 2.4 million containers and trailers.
   “Rail carloads in February, like in many other recent months, were held back by declines in coal, grain, and motor vehicles,” AAR Senior Vice President John T. Gray said in a statement. “Declines in those categories are unfortunate, but they don’t reflect general weakness in the economy. Excluding them, carloads were up a reasonably solid 2.1 percent in February.
   “Moreover, February 2018 was the best month ever for carloads of chemicals and the second-best month ever for intermodal,” he added. “While these are good signs for the broader economy going forward, they are potentially compromised by the uncertainty created by recent developments in trade policy.”