By Colin Kellaher 



  North American rail traffic fell 14.4% last week but improved sequentially for a fourth week in a row, data from the Association of American Railroads showed. 


  Carload volume slumped 20.4% for the week ended June 13 on a dozen reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads, while intermodal traffic fell 8.4%, the trade group said Wednesday. 


  In the week ended June 6, North American rail traffic fell 15.4%. For the first 24 weeks of the year, North American traffic is down 11.9%, compared with a year-to-date decline of 11.7% reported a week earlier. 


  The AAR said U.S. rail traffic fell 14.9% last week, with carloads off 22.8% and the volume of intermodal containers and trailers down 7.3%. 


  U.S. rail traffic is now down 13.2% for the year to date, the AAR said, compared with a year-to-date decline of 13.1% reported a week earlier. 


  Canadian rail traffic fell 12.4% last week amid a 15.5% drop in carloads and an 8.6% decline in intermodal units. Canadian rail traffic is down 7.8% for the first 24 weeks of the year. 


  Mexican rail traffic slid 16.8% for the week, as carloads fell 10.9% and intermodal units tumbled 23.8%. Mexican rail traffic is now down 10.1% for the year, the AAR said. 


  Write to Colin Kellaher at colin.kellaher@wsj.com