Railway carloadings, June 2026

Released: 2026-08-25

Highlights

In June, Canadian railways transported 30.9 million tonnes of freight, up 3.2% from June one year earlier and the third consecutive monthly increase. Increased loadings of grains and other commodities more than offset steep declines in iron ores and coal. Higher volumes of freight traffic from US rail connections also contributed to the overall tonnage increase.

The overall tonnage was the highest recorded for June in seven years. On a year-to-date basis through June, the volume of cargo moved by rail totalled 190.6 million tonnes, up slightly (+1.3%) compared with the same six-month period in 2025.

Consult the Rail Data Visualization Hub to explore monthly and annual rail statistics in an interactive format.

Chart 1 
Railway carloadings, total tonnage

The increase in total freight carried in June was the result of higher volumes of domestic non-intermodal (mainly commodities) and freight traffic from US rail connections.

Canola and other cereal grains carloadings remain strong

Loadings of non-intermodal freight in Canada increased for the second month, up 1.4% year over year to 23.9 million tonnes in June, led by large increases for certain grains.

The increase in grain traffic in June 2026, compared with the same month one year earlier, reflects a bumper crop year in 2025. Indeed, producer deliveries of major grains to a primary elevator were about 17.8% higher in June 2026 than they were one year earlier. In June, carloadings of canola rose year over year for the fifth month in a row, up 44.1% (+320 000 tonnes) from June 2025, following large increases in April (+27.3%) and May (+27.0%) 2026.

Meanwhile, loadings of other cereal grains, which have been on an upward trend since July 2025, grew 66.3% (+302 000 tonnes) in the period from June 2025 to June 2026.

This increase in rail carloadings of grains during June also coincided with the year-over-year increase in Canada's exports of farm, fishing and intermediate food products.

Also posting strong growth in June were loadings of fuel oils and crude petroleum, up 41.3% (+269 000 tonnes) year over year.

Chart 2 
Railway carloadings, largest commodity differences, June 2025 to June 2026

Iron ores and coal continue to dampen volumes

Growth in commodity traffic in June was moderated by declines of three commodities.

Iron ores and concentrates led the declines, with loadings down by 687 000 tonnes in June from one year earlier, marking the third consecutive monthly year-over-year drop.

Loadings of coal followed suit, down 16.6% (-522 000 tonnes) in June 2026 compared with June 2025, following sharp declines in April (-23.9%) and May (-21.6%) 2026.

Loadings of potash also declined in June, decreasing 9.7% (-223 000 tonnes) year over year, the largest drop in tonnage since October 2025.

Intermodal traffic down again

In June, intermodal shipments originating from Canada—mainly containers—continued their downward trend, decreasing slightly (-0.6%) from June the previous year to 3.2 million tonnes, marking the fourth consecutive monthly decline.

American freight up again

In June, freight loadings from American railways continued to grow for the fifth straight month, rising by 20.3% year over year to 3.8 million tonnes. This was the second-highest volume for the month on record.

Contact information

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