According to Statistics Canada, in March, the volume of cargo carried by Canadian railways amounted to 33.2 million metric tons, up 5.4 percent from March 2022 levels, marking the 11th consecutive month of year-over-year increases.
For March 2023, cargo tonnage was well above the five-year average for the month and second only to the record-high of 33.3 million tons set in the same month in 2021, primarily due to a large increase in grain shipments, notably wheat.
The non-intermodal freight loaded in Canada accounted for the overall increase in freight carried in March, rising 11.7 percent year over year to 26.6 million tons. While widespread, growth was driven by considerable increases in the loadings of some agricultural and food products―most notably grains.
Other significant increases were reported for iron ores and concentrates, with loadings rising 4.8 percent (+235,000 tons) in March 2023 compared with March 2022. Loadings of animal or vegetable fats, oils and flours were up 26.1 percent (+100,000 tons) year over year in March 2023, the eighth consecutive monthly increase.
Growth in non-intermodal loadings was moderated by declines in several commodities. Fuel oils and crude petroleum fell 12.6 percent (-140,000 tons) year over year in March—marking the 10th consecutive month of decline—while loadings of gasoline and aviation turbine fuel were down 21.2 percent (-48,000 tons).
In March 2023, intermodal shipments—mainly containers—originating in Canada declined year over year for the fourth straight month, down 8.4 percent in March to 2.9 million tons.
Freight loadings from connections with American railways fell year over year for the seventh month in a row, down 18.3 percent to 3.7 million tons in March.