This short article provides a brief overview of Domestic vs international intermodal loadings (NSA). Contact crt@ftrintel.com with additional questions.
The domestic and international volumes shown and forecast on page five of the Shippers Update report are based on the ETSO data provided by the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA). The volumes show the differing patterns and movements over time of international and domestic volumes. International volumes include any container that is either 20’ or 40’ in length and can move across the globe seamlessly on ocean-going vessels. They are generally owned by steamship lines, like Maersk, Evergreen, COSCO, etc. Domestic volumes refer to freight moving in a larger 53’ container, even if the freight inside of it has been transloaded from a 40’ container that was transloaded near a port complex. The 53’ container does not move outside of North America and does not move on steamships the way the international box does. There are several owners of 53’ domestic fleets including railroads, equipment lessors, and beneficial cargo owners.
The volumes are shown on both a seasonally adjusted and non-seasonally adjusted basis. Non-seasonally adjusted is exactly what it sounds like: the raw volume result for a given period. The seasonally adjusted figure takes into account the normal seasonal cyclicality of the market and allows the user to see how volumes are moving compared to where they should be at the particular point in the cycle they are viewing. Two good examples of when seasonal adjustments come into play would be the Chinese Lunar New Year period and the peak season that occurs at roughly the same time each year and has visible effects on loadings expectations.