Railcar utilization rate improves for first time since May

The number of stored railcars hit a three-year low during August, falling 2 percent to 303,800 cars stored as of September 1, according to recent data from Susquehanna Financial Group.

This was the first time since May that the total number of railcars in storage fell this year, while the number of empty stored railcars fell for the second straight month, the Bala Cynwyd, Pa.-based financial research group said. That left roughly 18 percent of the total North American fleet in storage as of September 1.