Continued Financial Uncertainty Mirrored in Rail Volumes

by Calculated Danger on 12/05/2025 04:20:00 PM

From the Affiliation of American Railroads (AAR) AAR Information Middle. Graph and excerpts reprinted with permission.

Continued Financial Uncertainty Mirrored in Rail Volumes
…
In November 2025, whole U.S. rail carloads had been up
1.5% over November 2024, and 9 of the 20 main rail
carload classes posted year-over-year good points. …

U.S. rail intermodal shipments, that are pushed primarily by shopper items, fell 6.5% in November 2025
from November 2024. Yr-to-date intermodal quantity by November was 13.00 million containers and
trailers, up 1.9% (practically 247,000 items) over final yr.
emphasis added

The AAR Freight Rail Index
(FRI) combines seasonally adjusted month-to-month
rail intermodal shipments with carloads excluding
coal and grain. The index is a helpful gauge of
underlying freight demand related to the
industrial and shopper economic system. The index fell
0.4% in November 2025 from October 2025, its
seventh decline prior to now eight months. The index
is 4.4% under its year-earlier stage, largely due to
the intermodal slowdown in current months.