United States rail carload and intermodal volumes, for the week ending July 4 were mixed, according to data issued this week by the Association of American Railroads (AAR).
Rail carloads, at 192,767, fell 12.7% compared to the same week in 2019, trailing the weeks ending June 27 and June 20, at 201, 502 and 201,823, respectively.
AAR said that two of the ten carload commodity groups it tracks, saw annual gains, including farm products excluding grain, and food, up 1,233 carloads, to 15,148; and motor vehicles and parts, up 1,065 carloads, to 12,152. Commodity groups annual declines included coal, down 10,946 carloads, to 48,930; metallic ores and metals, down 6,872 carloads, to 13,731; and nonmetallic minerals, down 5,000 carloads, to 26,632.
Intermodal containers and trailers, for the week ending July 4, at 245,222, saw a 7.7.% annual gain, trailing the weeks ending June 27 and June 20, at 257,947 and 255,455, respectively.
Through the first 27 weeks of 2020, AAR noted that total U.S. rail carload volume, at 5,700,780, was off 15.8% annually, and intermodal containers and trailers, at 6,436,785, fell 10% annually.