Canada’s major railways continue to generate record revenues and record profits.
Third quarter revenues at Canadian National Railway reached a record $3.12 billion in the three-month period ending Sept. 30.
Net income for the quarter rose 21 percent to $853 million, compared $705 million in the same period last year.
Revenues at rival Canadian Pacific Railway also set a new record.
CP’s third-quarter revenue was a record $1.67 billion and net income reached a record $400 million, up 23 percent from the same quarter a year ago.
Both companies reported their third quarter financial results Oct. 21.
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“Clearly we are growing much faster than the economy, which is our game plan,” CN chief executive officer Claude Mongeau said during a conference call with investors.
“The results underscore CN’s commitment to investing ahead of the curve in resources and rail infrastructure and playing our role as a true backbone of the economy.”
CP CEO Hunter Harrison said: “The CP team delivered another quarter of impressive results.… Going forward, we will continue to execute on our plan of delivering safe, superior service to our customers, focusing on further efficiency and capacity initiatives and building on our solid foundation for growth.”
Freight revenues derived from grain played prominently in both companies’ third quarter performances.
At CP, third quarter freight revenues from Canadian grain hauling rose to $248 million, up from $212 million during the same quarter last year.
Year-to-date grain revenues from only Canadian grain were listed at $721 million, up from $606 million last year.
At CN, third quarter revenues derived from hauling North American grain and fertilizer rose to $469 million, up from $363 million during the same quarter last year.
The company said the size of Canada’s 2014-15 crop is in line with the five-year average.
