It is reported that Cleveland iron ore shipments on the Great Lakes totaled 6.5 million tonnes in September 2008, up by 8.2% YoY. The trade also outperformed the month’s 5 year average by nearly 9%.

Despite the increases, the iron ore trade continued to struggle with the inefficiencies inherent with lack of adequate dredging. The largest iron ore cargo in September 2008, 66,761 net tonnes still represented only 92% against the record cargo carried in 1997.

In 2008, the Great Lakes iron ore trade stands at 45.6 million net tonnes, an increase of 9.8%YOY. Shipments also are ahead of the 5 year average for the first three quarters by nearly the same margin.