Calgary Alberta - Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. (CP) reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit on Wednesday as Canada's number 2 railroad operator was helped by higher shipments of commodities like grains and potash.
 
CP said total carloads, the amount of freight loaded into freight cars during a specified period, rose 2 percent.
 
The Calgary-based company said revenue from grains jumped 2.5 percent to $372 million in the reported quarter, while revenue from potash rose 6.4 percent.
 
However, the company saw an 8.8 percent increase in expenses largely driven by a rise in fuel costs.
 
CP's net income fell to $331.08 million, or $3.04 per share, in the second quarter ended 30 Jun 2018 from $480 million, or $3.27 per share, a year earlier.
 
On an adjusted basis, the company earned $3.16 per share, beating analysts' average estimate of $3.12, according to Thomson Reuters.
 
The company's revenue rose to $1.75 billion from $1.64 billion.
 
Anirban Paul.