Econintersect: Week 19 of 2015 shows same week total rail traffic (from same week one year ago) declined according to the Association of American Railroads (AAR) traffic data. Intermodal traffic improved, which accounts for half of movements – but weekly railcar counts continues going deeper into contraction.
This analysis is looking for clues in the rail data to show the direction of economic activity – and is not necessarily looking for clues of profitability of the railroads. The weekly data is fairly noisy, and the best way to view it is to look at the rolling averages which generally are in a weak growth cycle.
| Percent current rolling average is larger than the rolling average of one year ago | Current quantities accelerating or decelerating | Current rolling average accelerating or decelerating compared to the rolling average one year ago | |
| 4 week rolling average | -1.0% | decelerating | decelerating |
| 13 week rolling average | -0.8% | accelerating | decelerating |
| 52 week rolling average | +3.5% | decelerating | decelerating |
A summary of the data from the AAR:
The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending May 16, 2015.
For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 549,199 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.9 percent compared with the same week last year.
Total carloads for the week ending May 16, 2015 were 269,092 carloads, down 10 percent compared with the same week in 2014, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 280,107 containers and trailers, up 4.9 percent compared to 2014. One of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2014. It was motor vehicles and parts, up 1 percent to 19,021 carloads. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2014 included: metallic ores and metals, down 16.5 percent to 22,655 carloads; coal, down 15.3 percent to 93,664 carloads; and nonmetallic minerals, down 10.6 percent to 34,086 carloads.
For the first 19 weeks of 2015, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 5,312,651 carloads, down 2.2 percent from the same point last year; and 4,959,620 intermodal units, up 1.9 percent from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 19 weeks of 2015 was 10,272,271 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 0.3 percent compared to last year.
North American rail volume for the week ending May 16, 2015 on 13 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads totaled 365,068 carloads, down 9.1 percent compared with the same week last year, and 355,252 intermodal units, up 5 percent compared with last year. Total combined weekly rail traffic in North America, was 720,320 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.7 percent. North American rail volume for the first 19 weeks of 2015 was 13,401,930 carloads and intermodal units, up 0.8 percent compared with 2014.
Coal is over 1/3 of the total railcar count, and this week is 14.2% lower than the production estimate in the comparable week in 2014. The middle row in the table below removes coal and grain from the changes in the railcar counts as neither of these commodities is economically intuitive.
| This Week | Carloads | Intermodal | Total |
| This week Year-over-Year | -10.0% | +4.9% | -2.9% |
| Ignoring coal and grain | -7.1% | ||
| Year Cumulative to Date | -2.2% | +1.9% | -0.3% |
[click on graph below to enlarge]
Current Rail Chart:
z rail1.png
From EIA.gov:
For the week ended May 16, 2015:
- Estimated U.S. coal production totaled approximately 16.0 million short tons (mmst)
- This production estimate is about the same as last week’s estimate and 14.2% lower than the production estimate in the comparable week in 2014
- East of the Mississippi River coal production totaled 6.7 mmst
- West of the Mississippi River coal production totaled 9.4 mmst
- U.S. year-to-date coal production totaled 347.8 mmst, 6.4% lower than the comparable year-to-date coal production in 2014
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