U.S. rail carload and intermodal units are down for week ending October 26, reports AAR

United States rail carload and intermodal volumes were down for the week ending October 26 according to data issued this week by the Association of American Railroads (AAR). 

Rail carloads, at 243,321, were off 9.4% annually, trailing the weeks ending October 19 and October 12, at 245,002 and 243,807, respectively.

AAR said that one of the ten carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2018.  Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2018 included coal, down 14,797 carloads, to 73,184; grain, down 2,152 carloads, to 21,135; and metallic ores and metals, down 2,064 carloads, to 21,291.

Intermodal containers and trailers, at 269,826, were off 8.3% annually, topping the weeks ending October 19 and October 12, at 262,379 and 267,013, respectively.

Through the first 43 weeks of 2019, AAR reported that U.S. rail carloads, at 10,843,404, slipped 4.2% annually, and intermodal units, at 11,457,177, decreased 4.4%.