News / N America railroads see intermodal revenue fall, but CPKCP bucks the trend

01/02/2024

Canadian Pacific Kansas City Southern (CPKCP) has bucked a trend by reporting healthy intermodal revenue, but with its North American peers, it saw rates decline last year.

For Q4 and full-year 2023, CPKCP recorded year-on-year intermodal revenue growth of 15%, at C$670m (US$500m) for Q4 and 10% (at C$2.4bn) for the year, but this masked waning revenue per carload, down 24% in the quarter and 19% for the year.

This prompted chief marketing officer John Brooks to tell investors the carrier’s “intermodal area has been just a little bit tricky, but I’m looking for big things in 2024”.

At rival Canadian National (CN), intermodal revenue fell, and was the most pronounced decline of the major regional carriers, down 15% over the year, to C$47.8bn, while fourth-quarter revenue dropped 8%, year on year, while its revenue per carload was down 8% for the year but down 15% in Q4.

Across the border, Union Pacific (UP) recorded a full-year intermodal revenue dip of 12%, to $4.5bn, with Q4 turnover slumping 5% against its 2022 performance to $1.1bn, as rates fell 9% year on year.

Such was the decline that the carrier was forecasting a “muted” volume outlook for the coming 12 months, citing business lost in the international intermodal segment.

US compatriot CSX recorded similarly poor numbers: full-year revenue dropped 11% year on year, to $2bn, on the back of a 6% rates drop; Q4 revenue fell 4%, to $552m, with a revenue per carload decline of 4%.

CWO Joe Hinrichs, nonetheless, remained optimistic, stating that CSX had “demonstrated reliable, industry-leading network performance”.

He added: “Our railroad is running well; we’ve the right team and resources in place and look forward to building on our positive momentum.”