UpdateCanadian weekly chemical railcar traffic rises 2.7%

11 August 2011 19:41  [Source: ICIS news]

(adds Canadian and Mexican shipment data)

TORONTO (ICIS)--Chemical shipments on Canadian railroads rose by 2.7% in the week ended on 6 August compared with the same period in 2010, an industry association said on Thursday.

Canadian chemical railcar loadings for the week totalled 9,861, up from 9,598 in the same week a year earlier, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) said.

The previous week ended 30 July saw a year-on-year increase of 17.4%.

The weekly chemical railcar loadings data are seen as an important real-time measure of chemical industry activity and demand. Canada’s chemical industry transports two-thirds of its annual shipments on the country’s railway system.

Year to date to 6 August, Canadian chemical railcar shipments were up by 12.0% to 351,375.

The AAR said chemical railcar traffic in Mexico rose by 16.7% year on year to 1,168, from 1,001 in the same week a year earlier.

Year to date to 6 August, Mexican chemical railcar shipments were up 2.8% to 36,208 carloads.

Chemical shipments on US railroads rose 0.7% year on year in the week ended on 6 August, to 28,967 chemical railcar loadings from 28,767 loadings in the same week in 2010.

In the previous week ended on 30 July, US chemical railcar traffic was up by 4.9% year on year.

Meanwhile, overall US weekly railcar shipments for the 19 high-volume freight commodity groups tracked by the AAR rose 0.4% to 287,321 carloads.

For all of North America, total weekly railcar traffic rose 0.8% to 373,732 carloads.

Read Paul Hodges’ Chemicals and the Economy Blog

By: Stefan Baumgarten
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