US weekly coal carload volumes rise again, but remain historically
low: AAR
Houston (Platts)--24Jun2015/419 pm EDT/2019 GMT
Weekly coal carloads volumes originated on US railroads rose for the
third straight week but totals remained historically low, according to
data that the Association of American Railroads released Wednesday.
For the week that ended Saturday, the AAR reported 95,095 coal carloads,
up 6%, or 5,401 carloads, from the previous week, breaking a streak of
three straight weeks where volumes were below 90,000 carloads.
Carload totals for the week the ended May 30 reached a 125-week low of
88,025 carloads, the lowest reported since 87,371 carloads in the final
week of 2012, the AAR said. The following two weeks had volumes of
88,346 carloads and 89,694 carloads, the second- and third-lowest totals
of the year.
The latest total marks the 11th week this year volumes were below
100,000 carloads, a mark that had not been reached since the AAR began
such record keeping in 1988. According to AAR data, coal carloads last
fell below 100,000 the most times in 1989, when it happened in seven
weeks.
The latest coal carloads total slid 13.7% compared with the same week
a year ago.
This year, coal carload volumes average 101,537 a week compared with
111,844 a year ago, a decline of 10,307 carloads.
Year-to-date US coal carload originations fell 8.6% from the same period
last year to about 2.44 million.
Overall US rail traffic for the week totaled 550,839 cars, down 0.7%, or
3,622 carloads, from last week. Coal made up 17.3% of all traffic.
Canadian railroads -- which include the US operations of Canadian
National, which serves several mines in the Illinois Basin, and Canadian
Pacific -- originated 8,174 coal carloads, a 7.8% decrease from the
previous week and a 15.5% decrease from the same week last year. Year to
date, coal carloads are down 10.3%.
COAL SHIPMENT VOLUMES JUMP FOR UNION PACIFIC, CSX
For the week, coal carloads for the four largest US railroads, which
includes originations and interchange movements, were up compared with
the previous week, with volumes showing a marked increase for Union
Pacific and CSX.
Union Pacific reported 25,274 coal carloads, a 31.4% week-on-week
increase of 6,039 carloads from a year-low total of 19,235 carloads. The
railroad had reported three straight weeks of year-low volumes before
the increase in coal shipments.
But the latest total still marked a 23.4% drop in coal volumes from the
year-ago week. Coal made up 14.3% of weekly traffic.
Coal carload volumes had been less than 22,600 carloads for eight of
the last nine weeks for Union Pacific and had declined week over week 15
of the last 19 weeks.
Year to date, coal carload volumes are down 16.7% for Union Pacific, the
most of the four major railroads.
CSX reported 20,951 coal carloads, a 10.2% increase of 1,939 carloads
from the previous week but a 10% decrease from the year-ago week. Coal
made up 15.4% of all traffic.
The latest total marked the third straight week-on-week increase in coal
volumes for the railroad. Year to date, coal volumes are down 9.4% for
CSX.
COAL SHIPMENTS FLAT FOR NORFOLK SOUTHERN, BNSF
Norfolk Southern reported 19,425 coal carloads, a 0.9% increase of 171
carloads week over week but a 23.3% drop from the year-ago week. Coal
made up 13.1% of all traffic.
Coal carloads have increased three straight weeks for Norfolk Southern
but, year to date, coal volumes are down 16%.
BNSF reported 40,963 carloads, a loss of 800 carloads, or 1.9%, from the
previous week but a 1.8% increase over the year-ago week. Coal made up
20.9% of all traffic.
Coal shipments have decreased eight out of the last 10 weeks for the
railroad.
Year to date, coal shipments are still up 3.8%, or 34,458 carloads, for
BNSF, the only major US railroad with an overall increase in coal
shipments in 2015.
--Jim Levesque,
jim.levesque@platts.com
--Edited by Valarie Jackson,
valarie.jackson@platts.com
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