July intermodal volumes post slight annual gain, reports IANA

July intermodal volumes turned were flattish, according to data recently provided to LM by the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA).

Total July shipments—at 1,534,553—eked out a 0.5% annual gain, trailing June’s 12.0% annual gain, to 1,585,111 shipments.

Domestic containers—at 651,309—decreased 5.9% compare to July 2020, with trailers—at 99,230—down 7.5%. All domestic equipment—at 750,539—slipped 6.1%, and international, or ISO, containers—at 784,014—were up 7.8%.

On a year-to-date basis, for the first seven months of 2021, total shipments—at 10,988, 937—are up 13.0%. Domestic containers—at 4,612,794—are up 7.3%, with trailers—at 716,370—up 14.6%. All domestic equipment—at 5,329,164—saw an 8.3% gain, and ISO containers—at 5,659,773—are up 17.9%.

Earlier this month, IANA reported that for the second quarter, total intermodal volume came in at 4,838,122 units, marking a 20.4% annual increase. Trailers—at 307,866—headed up 18.5% annually, and domestic containers—at 2,017,223—rose 15.7%, with all domestic equipment—at 2,325,033—seeing a 24.8% annual increase. International, or ISO, containers—at 2,513,033—were up 24.8% annually.

Looking ahead, IANA said that the outlook over the remainder of 2021 is solid, with the pairing of strong domestic demand and weak annual comparisons as key factors. And it added that intermodal volumes are expected to be up 9% annually for the year, with ISO leading the way, with an expected annual gain of almost 13%. Domestic container moves are pegged to be up a little more than 6%, with trailer loads estimated to be up between 1.5-to-2.5%.

IANA President and CEO Joni Casey recently told LM that on a year-to-date basis volumes are still strong, especially when taking into account that intermodal activity really started to accelerate in June 2020.

“The annual comparisons and growth numbers are still very strong,” she said. “Compared to [June and July] 2020, it shows a little bit of [slowing].”

When asked about some supply chain challenges like port congestion, a lack of empty containers, chassis supply, and the driver shortage, in terms of their collective impact on intermodal, Casey explained that it is important to keep in mind are a direct result of the pandemic and its impact on the economy.

“It is not going to be worked off, in the short term,” she said. “We have had unprecedented freight volumes, following the bottoming out of traffic from the middle of 2019 or a little bit later. And nobody could have anticipated, or planned for, the growth in freight and cargo shipments we have seen in the last year-plus. All components of the international supply chain have been impacted: ocean, marine terminals, railroads, truckers, and inland facilities.

There is no stone left unturned, in terms of people trying to deal with many challenges and issues. I think you are seeing some ancillary issues crank up, too, with the Covid outbreak in Yantian, China, which created bottlenecks in Asia that are now starting to unwind and hitting the West Coast. We have equipment issues, with the relocation of containers and chassis in high volume instance. It is really about making sure we can get the right equipment to the right place at the right time. With the volumes everyone is dealing with, it is a real difficult situation right now, but everyone is doing their best to try to remediate it.”