Intermodal numbers suggest recession bottoming out

THE Intermodal Association of North America (IANA), in its third quarter Market Trends report, included several figures that pointed to an easing of the current economic downturn.

Chief among these was the total intermodal and trailer loadings number for the quarter, which was down 16.4 per cent year on year, a modest but encouraging improvement over the 18.7 per cent recorded in the preceding quarter.

The four primary intermodal metrics tracked by IANA all recorded negative quarterly growth, but domestic container volume grew 1.3 per cent, marking an improvement over the previous quarter when throughput only increased 0.9 per cent.

IANA vice president Tom Malloy told Logistics Management magazine that a robust recovery was unlikely due to the continually declining housing and automotive markets, together with limited consumer credit, and consumers paying down debt, while spending only on essentials.

Despite industrial production numbers being up, he added, it is unlikely that consumer spending will follow suit in a big way any time soon.

Mr Malloy also commented on the fuel situation, saying that with prices on the rise, a marked shift to rail freight was inevitable.

Regarding length of haul meanwhile, the IANA also reported a 50 mile drop from the 1,600 recorded during the busy 2000-2006 days.

(Source: www.schednet.com)