Canadian National Railway’s (CN) fourth-quarter and full-year ledgers show lower traffic, but increased revenue, from its grain and fertilizer business in 2015, en route to record full-year earnings. Montreal-based CN on Tuesday reported overall net income of $3.538 billion on $12.611 billion in total revenues for 2015, up from $3.167 billion on $12.134 billion for […] Read more
CN’s 2015 grain handle down, grain revenue up
Vessel demand concerns extend Baltic index fall
Reuters — The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index, which tracks rates for ships carrying industrial commodities, extended its record low run to a 14th straight session on Friday on persistent vessel glut and weak demand. The overall Baltic Dry Index, which gauges the cost of shipping dry bulk including iron ore, cement, grain, coal […] Read more
CP’s Norfolk bid riles U.S. railroads
Chicago | Reuters –– A legal protest by Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) over a meeting among big U.S. railroads about mergers in their industry has highlighted manoeuvring in the sector to cope with a rapid downturn and possible consolidation. Calgary-based CP on Tuesday asked the U.S. Justice Department to look into statements by U.S. railroads, […] Read more
CP books more Prairie grain revenue at year-end
Higher grain revenue on Canada’s Prairies helped lead to record full-year revenues and offset a lower fourth-quarter gross for Canadian Pacific Railway (CP), as the company warned of substantial job cuts ahead. The railway on Thursday reported overall net income of $1.352 billion on record revenue of $6.712 billion for 2015, down from $1.476 billion […] Read more
Supreme Court tosses CP challenge on interswitching
Canadian Pacific Railway’s (CP) bid to halt new federal rules which allow more Prairie elevators to move loaded grain cars on more than one railway has stopped at Canada’s highest court. The Supreme Court of Canada on Friday dismissed CP’s appeal of an October ruling at the Federal Court of Appeal — a ruling which […] Read more
Study finds Canadian beef’s GHG footprint shrunk over 30 years
Efficiencies in cattle production and feeding have allowed Canada’s beef industry to produce the same weight in beef as 30 years ago with smaller breeding herds, less land — and smaller greenhouse gas (GHG) output, a new study finds. The study, led by research scientist Tim McAllister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge, with […] Read more
Salford buys tillage equipment maker AerWay
Southwestern Ontario vertical tillage and pasture equipment maker AerWay has become part of another well-known Ontario ag equipment manufacturer. Salford Group announced in December it has bought the AerWay advanced aeration products line from the Canadian trailer systems arm of German truck, bus and trailer axle and suspension manufacturer SAF-Holland. AerWay, which operates a manufacturing […] Read more
Puree processor gets GF2 funds for expansion
A Portage la Prairie food processor that converts culled vegetables into nutritional purees has received $582,000 from the federal-provincial Growing Value program to increase its capacity. Canadian Prairie Garden Puree Products has acquired new equipment and modified its existing operation in order to cook more types of fruits, vegetables and pulse crops like chickpeas, navy […] Read more
Baltic Dry Index continues downward slide
CNS Canada — A downtrend in ocean freight rates shows no sign of letting up, as the Baltic Dry Index again hit fresh historic lows. The Baltic Dry Index (BDI) was quoted at 445 points on Thursday, marking a new low since records began in 1985. The index was trading above 1,200 as recently as […] Read more
Equipment maker Buhler books year-end loss
Weak commodity prices and political unease in Eastern Europe have led to a year-end loss for Canadian farm equipment and Versatile tractor maker Buhler Industries. Winnipeg-based Buhler on Tuesday reported a net loss of $5.3 million on revenues of $245.7 million for its year ending Sept. 30, down from a $12.5 million profit on $325.5 […] Read more
