Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from William Greene – Morgan Stanley.
William Greene – Morgan Stanley
Hunter, I just wanted to follow up on your comments here about we've seen perhaps the bottom in your business. How does a rebound look in your numbers? What are the first categories where you see the benefit and what moves first and then how does that follow through the rest of the business?
Hunter Harrison
I'm looking at it from a more 40,000 foot level of overall RTM's. Our RTM's have improved, June over May, July over June. It appears that that trend will continue. Jim's comments about the metals and minerals, I guess we could say it could get worse. It was down as low as 40% plus. To bounce back would be down 30%, not all bad.
We've seen some positive signs in chemical. I think the bulk, we're going to be fine with the grain, coal opportunity, and these are modest gains, but gains. Jim's right, there's not been as much positive sign on the lumber side, but a little bounce back there, some issues positive there. I think the most positive sign to me has been the last six or seven weeks intermodal has been pretty strong, particularly on the west coast.
We've made some operating changes there and I think that gives some indication of support for the improvement in Asia and China with those business levels which will only help us. So that's a little commentary on what I see.
William Greene – Morgan Stanley
Given that we may be near a bottom and the cash flows that Claude outlined here were actually quite strong, shouldn't we think about having a buy back, a more regular one in place given where the stock is?
Claude Mongeau
I think we have to wait to see what this economy does to confirm itself and that at the end of the first quarter; we have gone a little bit over where we want to be in terms of our balance sheet strength. So we've been replenishing our cash balance in anticipation of our debt maturity coming up here and our short term focus in on keeping a strong balance.
When the economy is clearly on the recovery path and our cash will improve, that's when we will be in a position to reassess where we are in terms of use of cash.
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