Great Lakes/Seaway Iron Ore Trade Up in November

Shipments of iron ore on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway totaled 5.5 million tons in November, an increase of 13 percent compared to a year ago, Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA) reported. Shipments were also slightly ahead of the month’s five-year average.

Shipments from U.S. Great Lakes ports totaled 5 million tons in November, an increase of 19.5 percent. However, loadings at Canadian terminals in the Seaway fell nearly 26 percent to just 530,000 tons.

Year-to-date the iron ore trade stands at 48.9 million tons, a slight decrease compared to the same point in 2015. Year-over-year, loadings at U.S. ports total 44.1 million tons, an increase of 3.2 percent, but shipments from Canadian ports in the St. Lawrence Seaway have slipped to 4.8 million tons, a decrease of nearly 27 percent.