United States rail carload and intermodal volumes saw mild gains in August, according to the new edition of the “Rail Industry Overview (RIO),” which was recently published by the Washington, D.C.-based Association of American Railroads (AAR). “Rail volume or rail traffic data in general is usually seen as a very important and solid indicator of what's happening in the economy,” he said. The weekly carload average for the month, at 230,184, represents the highest for any month going back to October 22. “Despite uncertainty in the labor market and elsewhere in the economy, rail volumes continue to hold up—a not-to-be-overlooked sign of resilience in today’s supply chains,” the report stated. “Intermodal volumes have generally been holding up—over the past two years, year-over-year monthly volumes have fallen just once—but the sector remains vulnerable to shifts in consumer spending, global trade flows, and policy-driven uncertainties.