BNSF IMPROVES 1ST-QUARTER INCOME 28.4%

BNSF IMPROVES 1ST-QUARTER INCOME 28.4%    Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. said its first-quarter net income jumped 28.4 percent to $172 million.
   The year-earlier quarter for Fort Worth, Texas-based BNSF included $40 million of non-recurring losses related to non-rail investments.
   Freight revenues declined 5.5 percent to $2.14 billion, while operating income slipped 12.2 percent to $368 million. Operating expenses were reduced 4.2 percent, to $1.80 billion. BNSF's operating ratio increased 1.3 percentage points to 82.8 percent.
   'Earnings were impacted by softness in all major product sectors and demand for coal was weakened because of mild winter weather,' said Matthew K. Rose, BNSF chairman, president and chief executive officer.
   Consumer products revenues decreased 3 percent to $778 million, reflecting decreased automotive shipments and lower levels of less-than-truckload traffic, partially offset by new truckload business and higher international volumes for intermodal, BNSF said. Industrial products revenues fell 5 percent to $491 million because of production cutbacks in most sectors. Coal revenues declined 3 percent to $508, reflecting the mild winter. Agricultural products were off 13 percent, to $361 million.
   BNSF operates 33,000 route miles of track in the western United States and two Canadian provinces.