AAR reports annual U.S. carload and intermodal gains for week ending January 19

United States rail carload and intermodal volumes each saw annual gains for the week ending January 19, according to data issued this week by the Association of American Railroads (AAR).

Rail carloads, at 258,833, headed up 7.4%, which topped the weeks ending January 12, January 5, and December 29 at 266,240, 221,759, and 210,333, respectively.

AAR reported that eight of the ten carload commodities it tracks saw annual gains, including: coal, up 5,554 carloads, to 87,906; nonmetallic minerals, up 3,614 carloads, to 29,994; and petroleum and petroleum products, up 3,151 carloads, to 13,710. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2018 were grain, down 415 carloads, to 22,913; and farm products excl. grain, and food, down 370 carloads, to 15,357.

Intermodal containers and trailers, at 284,278, increased 6.5%, and trailed the week ending January 12 at 288,887 and topped the weeks ending January 5 and December 29 at 214,344 and 201,343, respectively.

For the first three weeks of 2019, U.S. carloads are up 8.1% annually to 746,832 and intermodal units rose are up 5.7% to 787,509.