Metallic ores and petroleum lift another strong week for U.S. rail freight
Key Takeaways
- •Weekly U.S. rail traffic totaled 526,410 carloads and intermodal units in the week ending Aug. 1, up 2.4% year over year.
- •U.S. carloads declined 0.4% while intermodal volume increased 4.8% to 293,239 containers and trailers.
- •Metallic ores and metals rose 9.1% and petroleum and related products gained 5.9%, while coal fell 7.7%.
- •For the first 30 weeks of 2026, U.S. railroads reported gains of 2.7% in carloads and 3.8% in intermodal units, lifting combined traffic 3.3%.
- •North American weekly traffic rose 2.5%, and year-to-date North American volume increased 2.9% from the prior year.
The beginnings of another peak import surge, along with continuing shifts of truckload freight to rail, helped support weekly intermodal traffic and keep U.S. rail freight activity solid.
Association of American Railroads data for the week ending Aug. 1 showed 526,410 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.4% from the same week a year earlier.
Carloads totaled 233,171, down 0.4% year over year, while intermodal volume rose 4.8% to 293,239 containers and trailers.
Seven of the 10 carload commodities tracked by AAR finished higher. Metallic ores and metals led the gains, climbing 9.1%, followed by petroleum and related products, which rose 5.9%.
Ore shipments have increased alongside stronger domestic steel production, which the American Iron and Steel Institute said was up 5.6% year over year and 5.8% year to date. That keeps a key industrial freight category moving even as some other commodities soften, underscoring how rail volumes often reflect shifts in heavy industry, energy demand and trade flows at the same time.
Coal was the largest decliner, falling 7.7%. Chemicals declined 2.3%, and motor vehicles and parts were down 5.3%.
For the first 30 weeks of 2026, U.S. railroads reported 6,811,496 carloads, up 2.7%, and 8,418,215 intermodal units, up 3.8% from the previous year. Total combined traffic increased 3.3% to 15,229,711 carloads and intermodal units.
North American volume for the week across nine reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads edged up to 335,697 carloads, a 0.5% increase, and 377,702 intermodal units, up 4.3% from 2025. Combined weekly traffic reached 713,399 carloads and intermodal units, up 2.5%.
For the first 30 weeks of 2026, North American volume rose 2.9% to 20,931,511 carloads and intermodal units year over year.
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Read more articles by Stuart Chirls here.
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