UpdateCanadian weekly chemical railcar traffic rises 6.2%

18 August 2011 18:30  [Source: ICIS news]

(adds Canadian and Mexican shipment data)

TORONTO (ICIS)--Chemical shipments on Canadian railroads rose by 6.2% in the week ended on 13 August compared with the same period in 2010, an industry association said on Thursday.

Canadian chemical railcar loadings for the week totalled 10,191, up from 9,596 in the same week a year earlier, the Association of American Railroads (AAR) said.

The previous week ended 6 August saw a year-on-year increase of 2.7%.

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 13 August, Canadian chemical railcar shipments were up by 11.8% to 361,566.

The AAR said chemical railcar traffic in Mexico rose by 13.1% year on year to 1,324, from 1,171 in the same week a year earlier.

Year to date to 13 August, Mexican chemical railcar shipments were up 3.1% to 37,532 carloads.

Chemical shipments on US railroads rose 1.2% year on year in the week ended on 13 August – to 29,682 chemical railcar loadings, from 29,325 loadings in the same week in 2010.

In the week ended on 6 August, US chemical railcar traffic was up by 0.7% year on year.

Meanwhile, overall US weekly railcar shipments for the 19 high-volume freight commodity groups tracked by the AAR fell 1.2% to 292,266 carloads.

For all of North America, total weekly railcar traffic fell 0.4% to 381,887 as increases in Canadian and Mexican shipments were more than offset by the decline in the US.

Read Paul Hodges’ Chemicals and the Economy Blog

By: Stefan Baumgarten
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