Railways say they moved a record amount of grain in January

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. says it moved a record amount of grain in January.

CP Rail says it carried 2.22 million metric tonnes of Canadian grain and grain products in January, up six per cent from the previous record it set in January 2020.

The railway says it has shipped 16 million metric tonnes of Canadian grain and grain products in the 2020-2021 crop year so far.

The shipments exceed the amount shipped at this time last year by more than 13 per cent.

Last week, Canadian National Railway Co. reported it set its own record with 2.95 million metric tonnes, beating its previous January best set in 2019 of 2.33 million metric tonnes.

CN said it has moved 17.5 million metric tonnes so far this crop year, up from the record 14.9 million metric tonnes at the same point in the 2018-2019 crop year.

The record shipments come as both railways invest in their grain fleets and bring new high-capacity hopper cars into service.