AAR reports U.S. carload and intermodal gains for week ending August 4

TheAssociation of American Railroads (AAR)reported this week that United States rail carload and intermodal volumes were both up for the week ending August 4.

Carloads, at 279,907, saw a 3% annual increase, topping the week ending July 28 at 271,234 and the week ending July 21 at 265,338.

AAR said eight of the ten carload commodity groups it tracks saw annual gains, including: grain, up 4,204 carloads, to 25,060; petroleum and petroleum products, up 1,456 carloads, to 10,837; and motor vehicles and parts, up 1,111 carloads, to 16,709. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2017 were miscellaneous carloads, down 1,039 carloads, to 10,227; and nonmetallic minerals, down 508 carloads, to 38,410.

Intermodal containers and trailers rose 5.4% to 291,088. This topped the 287,920 recorded for the week ending July 28 and the 287,686 recorded for the week ending July 21.

Through the first 31 weeks of 2018, the AAR reported that U.S. carloads are up 1.6% annually at 8,075,614, and intermodal units are up 6.1% at 8,552,797.