North American rail freight traffic remains in the doldrums, the Association of American Railroads reported

Railway Age reports:

North American rail freight traffic remains in the doldrums, the Association of American Railroads reported for the week ending May 21, 2016.

Total U.S. weekly rail traffic was 506,983 carloads and intermodal units, down 8.5% compared with the same week last year. Total carloads for the week ending May 21 were 244,290 carloads, down 10.6% compared with the same week in 2015, while U.S. weekly intermodal volume was 262,693 containers and trailers, down 6.5% compared to 2015.

Four of the 10 carload commodity groups posted an increase compared with the same week in 2015. They included miscellaneous carloads, up 20.7% to 10,071 carloads; nonmetallic minerals, up 4.7% to 37,326 carloads; and motor vehicles and parts, up 2.1% to 19,067 carloads. Commodity groups that posted decreases compared with the same week in 2015 included coal, down 28.8% to 66,709 carloads; petroleum and petroleum products, down 21.5% to 11,593 carloads; and forest products, down 8.3% to 10,341 carloads.

For the first 20 weeks of 2016, U.S. railroads reported cumulative volume of 4,803,310 carloads, down 14% from the same point last year; and 5,150,727 intermodal units, down 1.7% from last year. Total combined U.S. traffic for the first 20 weeks of 2016 was 9,954,037 carloads and intermodal units, a decrease of 8.1% compared to last year.

Another sign the economy is in a recession.