The US inland barge fleet is expected to shrink 5.5 pct this year, down by a net 950 barges, nearly twice last year's decline, as higher steel prices are stalling new barge construction and spurring increased scrapping of old barges. The barge industry that serves the central and Midwest US waterways consisted of 17,788 barges at the start of 2004, but lost 967 to scrapping and 100 to sales during the course of the year, said Tom Vorholt, vice-president of dry cargo sales at the Nashville, Tenn.-based Ingram Barge. The barge company operates 4,200 barges.
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