Market and product
Weekly US coal train loadings rise 1.4% on week, fall 11.6% on year
US coal train loadings ticked up 1.4% in the week that ended March 15, despite a near-three-year low in loadings from the Powder River Basin, US Surface Transportation Board data showed Friday.
It was the second-highest loadings for the corresponding week in four years, only behind the year-ago week.
Since January 1, total loadings have averaged 93.6 trains/d, down from 97.3 trains/d averaged in the same period a year ago.
Average Powder River Basin loadings decreased to 42.1 trains/d in the latest week from 43.7 trains/d in the prior week and 54.6 trains/d in the year-ago week. It was the lowest weekly loadings since 41.4 trains/week averaged in the week ended May 27, 2016, because of flooding and severe weather in the Midwest, as well as two Union Pacific train derailments in western Nebraska that occurred in early March.
Cumulative PRB loadings this year are at 51.2 trains/d from 56.2 trains/day averaged last year.
Illinois Basin loadings jumped to a 13-week high 8.3 trains/d, up from 7.9 trains/d a week earlier, but down from 8.5 trains/d a year ago. Since January 1, Illinois Basin loadings have averaged 7.5 trains/d, down from 7.8 trains/d a year ago.
Central Appalachia loadings were at 16.9 trains/d, down from 17.5 trains a week earlier and 18.5 trains averaged in the year-ago week. Loadings from the CAPP region in 2019 have averaged 15.6 trains/day, up from 15.4 trains averaged a year ago.
Loadings in Northern Appalachia jumped to a 3.5-year high 14.5 trains/d, from 13.3 trains/d a week ago and 13.4 trains/d in the year-ago week. It was the highest loadings in a week since 15.3 trains in the week that ended August 7, 2015.
Cumulative loadings in Northern Appalachia averaged 11.5 trains/d in 2019, up from 10.5 trains averaged a year ago.
Combined with Northern Appalachia and Central Appalachia, loadings from the two regions were at 31.5 trains/d in the latest week, up from 30.7 trains/d in the prior week but down from 32 trains/d a year ago. Since January 1, average loadings in the two regions are at 27.1 trains/d, up from 25.9 trains/d in the same period last year.
Loadings from outside of the primary basins jumped to 9 trains/d from 7.3 trains/day averaged a week earlier and 7.7 trains in the year-ago week.- spglobal.com -
