The Lake Carriers' Association reported Friday that shipments of coal on the US Great Lakes totaled 2.9 million net tons in May, an increase of 28 percent over April, but down 8.5 percent over May 2010. And compared to May's five-year average, loadings were down 26.2 percent.
Year-to-date in 2011, the coal trade stands at 6.5 million net tons, down 3.2 percent over the same period last year.