AAR reports mixed volumes for February 2016

The Association of American Railroads (AAR) reported this week that United States rail carload and intermodal volumes for the month of February were mixed on an annual basis.

February carloads were down 10.1 percent, or 110,132 annually, to 979,042. And nine of the 20 carload commodities the AAR tracks saw annual gains, with motor vehicles and parts up 19.4 percent or 12,573 carloads, and miscellaneous carloads up 30.6 percent or 5,345 carloads. Coal dropped 27.3 percent or 112,620 carloads, and petroleum and petroleum products fell 20.8 percent, or 11,720 carloads. Minus coal loadings the annual volume decline for carloads is less severe, with carloads up 0.4 percent or 2,488 carloads annually.

Intermodal volume in February was 12.9 percent, or 119,778 units, annually at 1,049,126 containers and trailers. The AAR said that February’s annual comps were aided by February 2015 still feeling the effects of the West Coast port labor situation, which stalled freight flows to a large degree as inbound cargo faced lengthy delays at U.S. ports, especially on the West Coast.

For the week ending February 27, U.S. carloads were down 7.1 percent annually at 248,281 carloads, and intermodal was up 13 percent at 273,019 trailers and containers.