Intermodal Association of North America

Rail Freight and Intermodal volumes bearing the brunt of COVID-19 pandemic

Total shipments for the month—at 1,280,309—were off 15% annually. Domestic containers—at 523,732—were off 14.7%, while trailers—at 71,086—slumped 30.5%%. All domestic equipment—at 594,818—was off 17%. ISO, or international, containers—at 685,491—saw a 13.2% decline.

Total shipments for the month—at 1,330,803—were off 5.4% annually. Domestic containers—at 608,833—were up 5.8% decline, while trailers—at 83,155—slumped 22.6%. All domestic equipment—at 691,988—was off 13%. ISO, or international, containers—at 638,815—saw an 11.8% decline.

Total fourth quarter volume—at 4,446,846 units—saw a 7.4% annual decline. Trailers—at 292,513—dropped 21.4%, and domestic containers—at 1,958,649—dropped 2.7% annually, and the “all domestic equipment” category—at 2,251,162—was down 5.6% compared to the fourth quarter of 2018. ISO, or international, containers—at 2,195,684—fell 9.1%.

Truckload pricing, which measure linehaul rates, fell 2.5% annually in October, following declines of -2.6% and -2.0% in August and September, respectively. On the intermodal side, the Broughton report said October represented the 37th consecutive month of annual gains for intermodal transportation costs, with the caveat that the differential has been narrowing for the past 12 months (through October 2019).

In its quarterly “Market Trends” report, IANA reported that total third quarter volume––at 4,662,488––was off 3.7% annually, marking the fourth consecutive quarter of annual declines after a lengthy stretch of gains going back to the third quarter of 2016. The first quarter of 2019 was down 1.5% annually, following 4.7% and 4.2% annual gains from the third and fourth quarters of 2018, respectively. And second quarter volumes were off 3.8% annually.

Total fourth quarter intermodal volume movements, at 4,799,714, posted a 4.2% annual gain, which was in line with the third quarter’s 4.7% annual increase but down compared to 7.2% and 6.2% annual gains in the first and second quarters, respectively. For all of 2019, total intermodal volume increased 5.6% annually to 18,931,323. ISO again led the way, rising 5.4% to 9,558,448 for a new all-time record, and domestic containers, at 7,928,304, were up 4.9%. Despite the dip in the fourth quarter, trailers increased 10.6% to 1,444,571.

Total third quarter intermodal volume movements, at 4,843,308, headed up 4.7% annually.

Trailers saw the most significant growth, rising 6.8% to 116,653, with domestic containers seeing a 1.7% annual gain to 650,848. Total domestic equipment was up 2.4% annually to 767,501. ISO, or international containers, had the highest-volume month of all IANA metrics, rising 2.3% to 779,605.

Intermodal volume headed up for the third straight quarter, which was immediately preceded by annual declines during the second and third quarters of 2016 and 25 consecutive quarters of growth prior to that.

Carloads headed up 12.4 percent annually at 260,897, and intermodal containers and trailers saw an 11.6 percent annual increase to 265,574.

The board of directors of the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) has elected Adriene Bailey, Chief Strategy Officer, Yusen Logistics (Americas) Inc., as its chairman for 2017.

In October, Schneider said it began providing service in the form of Mexico cross-border intermodal loads through Jackson, Miss.-based steel wheel interchange, with its intermodal Mexico Direct loads moving between Chicago and Jackson on the Canadian National Railway and then between Jackson and Mexico on the Kansas City Southern Railway.

The Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) reported this week in its Intermodal Market Trends & Statistics report that total second quarter intermodal container and trailer movements showed annual growth, albeit not at the levels seen in the first quarter, with total movements—at 3,885,581 trailers and containers—up 2.4 percent annually.

Carload volume—at 280,624—were up 0.5 percent annually, and intermodal—at 228,806 containers and trailers—was up 0.7 percent.