Tentative deal keeps trains rolling after all-night talks

WASHINGTON－US President Joe Biden announced a tentative deal on Thursday to avoid a crippling strike by railway unions following all-night talks as the clock ran down on threats to disrupt US supply chains in the run-up to congressional midterm elections.

Biden, who was personally calling into the negotiations as late as 9 pm on Wednesday, issued a predawn statement announcing the preliminary resolution, which allows for a 24 percent wage increase between 2020 and 2024, including an immediate payout.

The deal came as a relief after worries that a Friday deadline would trigger nationwide stoppages, snarling critical supplies to an economy in the midst of a jittery recovery from the pandemic-era shutdown.

For Biden personally, a strike would have been politically damaging as he tries to steer his Democratic Party's uphill bid to hold on to Congress in November, with Republicans focusing heavily on high inflation.

The Association of American Railroads, which represents the nation's freight railroads, welcomed the deal.

Major freight carrier Union Pacific said it "looks forward to the unions ratifying these agreements and working with employees as we focus on restoring supply chain fluidity".

In the West Wing, exhausted staffers recounted an all-nighter that saw cabinet secretaries huddle with union leaders and rail executives at the Labor Department building.

"There were 20-plus hours in negotiations. At no point did anyone ever get to go home," a senior official told reporters.

Polls show voters are worried about soaring prices in the post-pandemic economy, where supply chain issues have been a constant scourge and annual inflation has surged to a 40-year high.

The Association of American Railroads had warned that a strike would bring 7,000 trains to a halt, costing $2 billion a day.

US natural gas futures dropped about 8 percent after soaring 10 percent in the prior session. Investors expected that a rail strike would have threatened coal supplies to power plants and boost demand for gas.

"There is no real substitute for moving agricultural goods," American Farm Bureau Federation president Zippy Duvall said.

Recognizing the danger, Biden had appointed an arbitration panel back in July to facilitate the negotiations. Asked by reporters in the Rose Garden what consumers should do about rapidly rising food prices and other inflation, he said the railway deal would bring relief.

Amtrak, the US rail passenger operator, which had announced plans to cancel long-distance train services if freight workers went on strike, said it would immediately get trains rolling again.

"Amtrak is working to quickly restore canceled trains and reaching out to impacted customers to accommodate on first available departures," it said in a statement.

Agencies Via Xinhua