WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sep. 23, 2015 – The Association of American Railroads (AAR) today reported U.S. rail traffic for the week ending Sep. 19, 2015. For this week, total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 566,734 carloads and intermodal units, down 2.5 percent compared with the same week last year.
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On news of slightly decreased U.S. oil supplies Tuesday oil prices rose, with Brent crude up 55 cents to $47.89 a barrel after sinking 2.5 percent Monday. U.S. light crude was up 45 cents to $44.88.
The value of U.S.-NAFTA freight totaled $93.0 billion in July 2015 as all modes except air carried less freight than in July 2014, according to the TransBorder Freight Data released today by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS
Consumer confidence unexpectedly rose in September as a resilient labor market helped American shake off the effects of tumbling stock prices.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) said in a report issued Friday that cargo preference for food aid (CPFA) requirements increased the overall cost of shipping food aid by an average of 23 percent between April 2011 through fiscal year 2014, or $107 million over what the cost would have been had had cargo preference for food aid requirements not been in place.
Truckload rates increased 3.7 percent in August 2015 compared to August 2014 following year-over-year increases of 3.6 percent in June and July, according to the latest Cass Truckload Linehaul Index.
Prices paid by American households declined in August as cheaper gasoline helped keep inflation below the objective of Federal Reserve policymakers.
The surge in cargo volume that major U.S. East Coast container ports have experienced this year at the expense of their West Coast counterparts has come mostly from large shippers because smaller companies can’t afford to alter their supply chain network, according to one logistics expert.
Certain shippers tapping southbound U.S. – Mexico intermodal services offered by Schneider National won’t have to wait on protracted clearance processes at the border, thanks to new streamlined customs processes announced Tuesday. (This article requires registration at the Journal of Commerce. To access, please click on the above link.)
Demand for freight transportation is expected to rise sharply in the coming decades. The Federal Highway Administration estimates total U.S. freight shipments will rise to 28.5 billion tons in 2040 — a 45 percent increase from 20121. As demand grows, intermodal rail will play a critical role in the current and future freight transportation landscape.