Great Lakes Iron Ore Shipments Up 156 Per Cent In January

Iron ore shipments from the Great Lakes on US-flagged ships rose by 156 per cent in January compared with January 2009.

Ships moved 2.4 million ton of cargo in January compared with 918,981 tons in January 2009 and 3.8 million tons in January 2008.

The Ohio-based Lake Carriers Association said the bulk of the cargo was related to the steel industry with about 1.8 million tons of iron ore making up the monthly total.

The Great Lakes fleet is now in winter lay-up with the last delivery taking place Feb. 1.