Railcar Loadings Dip in November

OTTAWA - Jan 29/08 - SNS -- Canadian railway traffic declined in November, according to Statistics Canada, as four of the industry's top five largest commodity classifications by tonnage declined.

Canadian railways loaded 24.5 million metric tons (MT) of freight in November, a 3.8% drop from the 25.4 million MT loaded in October. The industry's main transportation systems, non-intermodal and intermodal, both saw decreases in the number of loadings.

Non-intermodal freight loadings declined 4.1% in November to 21.9 million MT from the 22.8 million MT reported in October. The fall in non-intermodal loadings was primarily a result of reduced tonnage in four commodity classifications: iron ore and concentrates (-16.4%), lumber (-7.9%), potash (-7.7%) and wheat (-1.7%)

Despite November's decreased loadings, a number of commodities saw higher loadings, including hydrocarbon and waste-based commodities.

Hydrocarbon commodities with increased loadings include other refined petroleum and coal products (+11.4%), coal (+10.1%) and gaseous hydrocarbons, including liquid propane gas (+6.0%). The increase in hydrocarbon commodities was a result of rising demand for transportation fuels and exports.

Waste commodities with increased loadings include non-metallic waste and scrap (+27.0%), other manufactured and miscellaneous goods (+20.7%), and metallic waste and scrap (+9.3%). The increase in waste commodities was also a result of rising demand for exports.

Intermodal freight loadings fell 1.6% in November to 2.6 million MT. Container loadings decreased 1.4% to 2.5 million metric tones in November, while trailer loadings decreased 7.9% to 82,000 MT.

Rail freight traffic, either destined for or passing through Canada from the United States, decreased 5.2% to 2.9 million MT in November.

On a year-over-year basis, non-intermodal loadings fell 1.6% from November 2006, while intermodal loadings rose 6.1%. Traffic received from the United States continued its strong advance in 2007, surging 17.1% from November 2006.

The annual increase in tonnage from US inbound traffic resulted in a 20.9% rise in the number of carloadings.