The Lake Carriers' Association (LCA) reported Tuesday that US-flag Great Lakes freighters carried 8.6 million tons of dry-bulk cargo in October, a decrease of 12.3 percent compared to a year ago. The storms related to Hurricane Sandy played a role in the decrease. US-flag lakers collectively lost about 2,000 steaming hours waiting out the heavy weather. The October float was also 14.5 percent below the month's five-year average.
Iron ore cargos for the steel industry totaled 3.8 million tons in October, a decrease of 11.5 percent compared to a year ago. At 2 million tons, coal cargos were down only marginally, but loadings of aggregate and fluxstone fell almost 20 percent to 2.6 million.
Through October, US-flag cargos stand at 72.4 million tons, a decrease of 3.4 percent compared to the same point in 2011, and 1.5 percent below the five-year average for the January-October timeframe. Iron ore cargos are down by 3.4 percent compared to a year ago. Coal has slipped by more than 15 percent, but limestone cargos are still up by more than 6 percent, or 1.1 million tons.