The following is text of a news release from the Lake Carriers' Association:
(CLEVELAND) — Shipments of iron ore on the Great Lakes totaled 6.46 million tons in July, an increase of 7 percent compared to a year ago. Shipments were also 11 percent ahead of the month’s five-year average.
Year to date, the iron ore trade stands at 26.6 million tons, a decrease of 3.2 percent compared to the same point in 2017. However, iron shipments are 5.6 percent ahead of their five-year average for the seven months of the year.
About Lake Carriers’ Association
Lake Carriers’ Association represents 13 American companies that operate 45 U.S.-flag vessels (“lakers”) on the Great Lakes and carry the raw materials that drive the nation’s economy: iron ore and fluxstone for the steel industry, aggregate and cement for the construction industry, coal for power generation, as well as salt, sand and grain. Collectively, its members can transport more than 90 million tons of dry-bulk cargo per year and employ more than 1,600 men and women, all of whom are U.S. citizens or legally admitted aliens, and provide annual wages and benefits of approximately $125 million. In turn, those cargoes create and sustain nearly 116,00 jobs in the eight Great Lakes states and generate more than $20 billion in economic activity, $8.3 billion in personal income, $16.4 billion in business revenue, $4.1 billion in local purchases and $3.7 billion in taxes.