North American Rail Traffic Rose 1.1% in Week Ended Aug. 7

By Colin Kellaher

North American rail traffic edged up 1.1% last week, as the rate of weekly gains continues to slow, data from the Association of American Railroads showed.

Carload volume rose 4.1% for the week ended Aug. 7 on 12 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads, while intermodal traffic slipped 1.6%, the trade group said Wednesday.

In the week ended July 31, North American rail traffic rose 3.7%. For the first 31 weeks of the year, North American rail traffic is up 10.7%, compared with a year-to-date gain of 10.9% reported a week earlier.

The AAR said U.S. rail traffic rose 2.4% last week, as a 6.3% rise in carloads more than offset a 0.6% decline in the volume of intermodal containers and trailers. U.S. rail traffic is up 12% for the first 31 weeks of the year.

Canadian rail traffic inched up 0.6% last week amid a 2.1% rise in carloads and a 1% drop in intermodal units. Canadian rail traffic is up 7.1% for the first 31 weeks of the year.

Mexican rail traffic slid 13.8% last week, as carloads fell 11.6% and intermodal units tumbled 16.6%. Mexican rail traffic is up 7.2% for the year to date, the AAR said.

Write to Colin Kellaher at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 11, 2021 13:29 ET (17:29 GMT)

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