Freight railroad Union Pacific says 2Q profit up 53 percent as shipments rise

Union Pacific 2Q profit up 53 percent

DALLAS — Union Pacific Corp. says its recovery from recession is on track.

The big freight railroad said Thursday that second-quarter net income rose by half to $711 million, or $1.40 a share, and that all of its business groups showed growth for the first time in six years.

Revenue increased to $4.2 billion from $3.3 billion.

Union Pacific says carloads increased by nearly one-fifth compared to last year, when the freight business was suffering from a recession that cut into shipments of all kinds of goods.

But the company says it’s paying much more for fuel. Its diesel prices are up 46 percent.

Union Pacific says it doesn’t know which way the economy is going, but it expects more growth in volume of goods carried this year and beyond.