Greenbrier Daily Industry News

Domestic News

For Trinity, Cautious Optimism in 2021

Trinity Industries’ financial and operating results for fourth-quarter and full-year 2020 reflect “the decline in railcar demand” following the pandemic, President and CEO Jean Savage reported on Feb. 24. Savage noted that “market uncertainty as it relates to COVID-19 remains the predominant story on the economic and rail industry outlook.”

Watco Partners with Maritime Company to Support Offshore Wind Industry

With the growing number of wind projects planned for U.S. waters, the partnership brings together industry-leading project management and logistics experts who can provide a “one-stop-shop” for owners, operators, and local port authorities in support of the offshore wind industry.

Intermodal, Carloads Post Double-Digit Losses

Carloads as well as intermodal containers and trailers posted double-digit losses compared with 2020, coming in at 171,642 (down 26.3%) and 206,262 (down 17.4%), respectively. Rail volumes decreased “as extreme winter weather gripped much of North America,” Susquehanna Financial Group Analyst Bascome Majors noted in a Feb. 24 railroad report.

TTX Executives Forecast Intermodal Growth This Year

Overall intermodal traffic in North America is expected to return to growth this year as retail inventories remain low, consumers continue to spend on goods instead of services during the pandemic, and trucking companies can’t field enough drivers to meet demand. That’s the view of a trio of TTX analysts who participated in an Intermodal Association of North America webcast on Tuesday.

Canada Revises Rules for Trains Hauling Dangerous Goods

Canada's Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced yesterday changes to the federal Rules Respecting Key Trains and Key Routes, which have been approved by Transport Canada (TC). The changes are the result of ministerial orders put in place in 2020 to address important risk factors for derailments caused by railway infrastructure, especially during winter operations, TC officials said in a press release.

Jaxport Unveils Five-Year Strategic Plan

Jacksonville Port Authority (Jaxport) officials yesterday unveiled the Florida port's strategic plan for the next five years. The previous plan, for years 2014 through 2019, focused on infrastructure.

Court Rejects FRA Effort to Preempt States' Train-Crew Laws

The U.S. Court of Appeals on the Ninth Circuit has rejected the Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) attempt to prevent states from passing laws that would require at least two-person crews on freight trains. The case was brought by the states of California, Washington and Nevada, as well as two rail labor unions, to challenge former Federal Railroad Administrator Ronald Batory's order to cancel two-person train-crew laws of those and other states and attempt to authorize nationwide one-person crews.

Box Shipping’s Bonanza Masks Regional Variations

Container volumes fell by only 1.2% in 2020, despite the pandemic. But on many trades, the recovery in the second half of the year still failed to make up for earlier losses.

U.S. Consumer Confidence Improves as COVID-19 Cases Fall; House Prices Accelerate

U.S. consumer confidence increased in February, with households slightly more upbeat about the labor market amid declining new COVID-19 infections and expectations for additional money from the government to help the economy’s recovery from the pandemic. The survey from the Conference Board on Tuesday also showed consumers warming up to overseas vacations, though fewer intended to purchase homes, automobiles and other big-ticket items over the next six months.

Biden Orders Review of U.S. Supply Chains with Early Focus on Autos

President Joe Biden issued an executive order Wednesday directing a review of U.S. supply chains with a special focus on key sectors affecting the U.S. auto industry, including semiconductor manufacturing, high-capacity batteries used in electric vehicles and rare earth minerals. The supply chains for these three "critical sets of products" — as well as the supply chain for medical supplies, which struggled with shortages early in the COVID-19 pandemic last year — will be subject to a 100-day review, administration officials told reporters Tuesday evening during a background call.

Inter Pipeline to Conclude Efforts to Find Partner for PDH/PP Complex by June; Celanese Retakes and Expands Acetic Acid Project in Texas; S&P CEO Discusses Integration After IHS Markit Planned Acquisition

Canada’s InterPipeline said on Feb. 18 that it plans to conclude by June efforts started about a year ago to find a partner for its C$4 billion Heartland Petrochemical Complex near Edmonton, Calgary, under construction and scheduled to start operations in early 2022. “While there can be no certainty that a definitive agreement will be reached, a partner would benefit from joining a well-developed, world-scale petrochemical project that has substantial commercial advantages,” the company said on Feb. 18 along with its fourth quarter 2020 earnings.

International News

Belarus Withdraws Its Cargo, but Lithuanian Railways Have the Answer

Rumours that Belarus would divert its cargo from Lithuanian infrastructure and the port of Klaipeda have been around for a long time. The underlying motives behind this decision relate to geopolitical pressures applied by the Belarussian government towards Lithuania.

Transwaggon to Install Savvy Telematics Equipment on Entire Fleet

Swiss wagon leasing company Transwaggon Group is to install Savvy Telematic Systems devices on a further 7,000 wagons over the next three years, completing the roll-out across its entire fleet of 13,500 vehicles.
 
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