Shipments of stone from U.S. and Canadian Great Lakes ports totaled 4.4 million tons in May, a decrease of 6.7 percent compared to a year ago. The decrease was not unexpected - three larger U.S.-Flag lakers that are active in the stone trade entered temporary lay-up in May, so capacity was reduced at least for the moment. For the season, the stone trade stands at 7.9 million tons, a decrease of 3.7 percent.
May 2001 | May 2000 | Season-To-Date 2001 | Season-To-Date 2000 | |
| U.S. Ports | 3,575,861 | 3,802,059 | 6,220,486 | 6,665,291 |
| Canadian Ports | 835,416 | 926,038 | 1,703,198 | 1,566,089 |
Total | 4,411,277 | 4,728,097 | 7,923,684 | 8,231,380 |