NAFTA Freight Flow Values See Monthly and Year-on-Year Increases

Excerpt from: Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg Trade | December 02, 2015
Photo Source: www.Depositphotos.com/ronniechua

Photo Source: www.Depositphotos.com/ronniechua

The value of monthly freight flows between the U.S. and its NAFTA partners rose slightly from August to September, up 0.9 percent to $93.2 billion, according to statistics released Nov. 24 by the Department of Transportation. However, the value of NAFTA freight flows in September was down 8.8 percent from a year earlier as all modes of transportation carried less value of freight and the prices of mineral fuel shipments continued to fall.

Month-to-Month Changes. Percentage changes in the value of monthly U.S. freight flows by mode of transportation from August to September include the following.

Total

Canada

Mexico

Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Truck

+6.8

+1.5

+5.8

No change

+7.5

+3.2

Rail

-6.9

-4.4

-3.2

-5.1

-11.2

-3.6

Vessel

-14.6

-13.9

-14.1

-20.9

-14.8

-9.7

Air

+13.9

+7.0

+22.9

+10.7

+0.4

+0.7

Pipeline

-4.7

-6.8

-4.7

+0.2

-9.5

-18.2

Year-on-Year Changes. The value of total U.S. trade with Canada was down 15.8 percent from September 2014 as all modes carried smaller total values of freight. The DOT notes that a contributor to this decline was lower prices for mineral fuels, which are a large share of freight carried by vessel and pipeline. The value of U.S. trade with Mexico saw a 0.2 percent gain and the rail and truck modes carried a higher value of freight than a year earlier. Vehicles and parts retained their spot as the top commodity category for all modes transported between the U.S. and Canada, as did electrical machinery with respect to U.S.-Mexico trade.

Percentage changes in the value of monthly U.S. freight flows by mode of transportation from September 2014 to September 2015 include the following.

 

Total

Canada

Mexico

  Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Imports

Exports

Truck

+5.4

-7.5

-2.9

-11.4

+12.0

+2.7

Rail

-10.2

-15.8

-18.3

-26.7

+3.3

-1.6

Vessel

-46.2

-29.0

-35.9

-35.6

-51.4

-25.0

Air

-0.9

-6.4

+4.5

-7.3

-9.7

-4.5

Pipeline

-44.1

-27.6

-44.3

-19.7

+36.7

-39.3

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