Econintersect: Week 18 of 2013 ending 04 May shows same week total rail traffic improved according to data released by the Association of American Railroads (AAR):
- Four week rolling average is improving (normal for this time of year);
- 13 week rolling average is improving ( normal for this time of year);
- 52 week rolling average is improving ( normal for this time of year);
- If coal and grain are ignored, this week’s comparison to same week one year ago shows expansion after last week’s contraction.
A summary of the data:
“Six of the 10 carload commodity groups posted increases compared with the same week in 2012, led by petroleum and petroleum products, up 52.4 percent. Commodities showing a decrease included grain, down 5.9 percent.
For the first 18 weeks of 2013, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 4,963,512 carloads, down 2.1 percent from the same point last year, and 4,292,613 intermodal units, up 4.3 percent from last year. Total U.S. traffic for the first 18 weeks of 2013 was 9,256,125 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.8 percent from last year.”
USA coal production is up 2.1% same week year-over-year, and coal over the last few months is becoming a neutral dynamic on rail.
| This Week | Carloads | Intermodal | Total |
| This week Year-over-Year | 2.8% | 2.8% | 2.8% |
| Ignoring coal and grain | 4.2% | ||
| Year Cumulative to Date | -2.1% | 4.3% | 0.8% |
[click on graph below to enlarge]
Current Rail Chart
/images/z rail1.pn
From EIA.gov:
For the week ended May 04, 2013:
Source: AAR
