(Reuters circulated the following on January 24.)
CHICAGO — No. 1 U.S. railroad Union Pacific Corp. is not counting on a recession hitting the U.S. economy in 2008 but for continued slow economic growth, the company’s top executive said on Thursday.
“We are not factoring in a major downturn,” Chief Executive Jim Young told Reuters in a telephone interview. “We expect to see more of the slower growth that we saw in the second half of 2007.”
Young also said capital expenditures for 2008 will “probably” be around the same level as in 2007 of just under $3.1. billion. The company also expects core freight price growth of 5 percent to 6 percent this year, he added.