U.S. March rail carload and intermodal volumes are mixed, reports AAR

United States March rail carload and intermodal volumes were mixed, according to data issued this week by the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

Rail carloads, at 866,865, were down 3.5%, or 31,101 carloads, annually, it said. And when excluding coal, carloads were up 18,214 carloads, or 2.9% annually, and when excluding coal and grain, carloads were up 9,739 carloads, or 1.7%.

AAR reported that 11 of the 20 carload commodity categories it tracks saw annual gains, including: grain, up 8,475 carloads or 11.4 percent; chemicals, up 7,248 carloads or 5.7 percent; and petroleum & petroleum products, up 5,249 carloads or 15.0 percent. Commodities posting annual declines included: coal, down 49,315 carloads or 18.6%; crushed stone, sand & gravel, down 5,434 carloads or 6.7%; and metallic ores, down 1,573 carloads or 8.9%.

Intermodal containers and trailers, at 1,022,321 units, rose 11.7%, or 106,903 units, annually, with combined U.S. rail carload and intermodal volumes, at 1,889,186, seeing a 4.2%, or 75,802 carload and intermodal units, increase.

“Large swaths of rail traffic reflect broader economic changes,” said Dr. Rand Ghayad, Chief Economist at the Association of American Railroads, in a statement. “The recent announcement by the Institute for Supply Management that its manufacturing sentiment index turned positive in March aligns with rail carloads, excluding coal, showing a healthy 2.9% growth. This growth was driven largely by chemicals, petroleum products, and autos, critical components of our economy. Conversely, coal volumes continue to decline due to ongoing shifts in electricity generation markets. Intermodal was again a bright spot in March, reflecting stable consumer spending, increasing port activity, and a reduction in inventory destocking.”

For the week ending March 30, AAR reported that U.S. rail carloads, at 218,733, were off 3.2% annually, and intermodal volume, at 253,918, rose 9.3% annually.