FTR | State of Freight
State of Freight is a series of industry resources from FTR, the leader in market intelligence and forecasting for the North American freight transportation industry. FTR podcasts provide updates for the Trucking and Rail markets, as well as the broader economy. Each podcast includes a slide deck of graphs that can be used in presentations or for internal analysis. For show downloads and to signup for more State of Freight content, go to www.FTRintel.com/podcast.
FTR | State of Freight
Rail Market Update - Week ending September 19, 2025
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FTR | Joseph Towers
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Episode 254
This week in the Rail Market Update:
- STB Developments: President Trump nominated Dick Closter to replace Marty Oberman on the Surface Transportation Board and renominated Michelle Schultz, while Robert Primus continues to contest his firing. These moves come as the STB prepares to weigh the proposed Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern transcontinental merger.
- Rail Traffic Trends: For the week ending September 13, North American rail traffic was down 0.9% y/y. Carloads declined in coal, forest products, and farm products (ex-grain), but chemicals and grains grew strongly. Intermodal fell 1.3%, largely due to weakness among U.S. western carriers.
- Big Picture Outlook: Recent weeks show continued carload weakness (coal, forest products, metallic ores) but some rebounds in chemicals and grains. U.S. intermodal volumes have been flat to down, with the latest week at their weakest since June, tied to softer port activity in Los Angeles and Long Beach.
The Rail Market Update is hosted by FTR’s Senior Analyst, Rail, Joseph Towers. As this information is presented, you are welcome to follow along and look at the graphs and indicators yourself by downloading the PDF of the presentation.
Download the PDF: https://www.ftrintel.com/rail-podcast