U.S. NAFTA freight value increased for 11th straight month in December

The total value of U.S. freight moved by transportation modes to Canada and Mexico climbed to $95.8 billion in December, marking the 11th consecutive month of year-over-year increases, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS). Surface transportation modes — namely rail, truck and pipelines — moved 82.3 percent of overall freight.

Rail carried 15.1 percent of that total, making it the second-largest mode, according to BTS data. Trucks came in first, moving 59.2 percent of all U.S.-NAFTA goods by value.

Rail also registered the second largest percentage of growth compared with December 2013 at 8.3 percent. Truck experienced the largest increase by value at 9.3 percent.