CP Outperformed CN During The 2020-21 Crop Year

Milt Poirier with QGI Consulting compiles the statistics for the Ag Transport Coalition.

In the latest Grain by Train Podcast, he noted, that CP led the way in every quarter when it came to rail car order fulfillments:

"They were better than CN week in and week out, basically for 52 weeks. And then a lot of those weeks it wasn't even close. CN on the other hand was a different story to say the least. The year started poorly for CN and it kind of stayed there. "

Poirier says for 2021-22 the summer drought will mean less grain to move, but that doesn't necessarily mean better rail performance.

"Railways will adjust to demand. So, if demand is low, the railways will figure out how low they think it is, and they'll start parking cars. They'll start releasing train crews and they'll start parking locomotives."

He notes they will look to bring their cost base down as a railway for servicing grain, consistent with what they see the market demand for movement being.

The Ag Transport Coalition membership includes grain companies and producer groups.