The head of CSX Corp said he does not expect any new mergers or buyouts in the North American railroad sector, saying the prices involved -- and the regulatory obstacles that need to be cleared -- are just too high.

In an interview with Reuters, Michael Ward, the chairman, president and chief executive officer of CSX, also said he is not worried that the U.S. economy is at risk of slipping back into a recession.

Using the freight his railroad carries as his prism, he said most areas of the economy -- including the auto industry -- were growing again. Only housing, he said, is "still very much in the doldrums," a fact reflected in lower shipments of everything from aggregates to lumber to appliances on the rails of CSX and its rivals.

"That's the only market we're not seeing the rebound," Ward said. "And quite frankly we don't have an expectation that it will anytime soon. But the other markets, overall, we're seeing good, solid gradual recovery, as we have since the second quarter of last year."

Asked whether he was concerned that the U.S. economy might falter and slip back into recession, Ward said: "We do not see a double dip." He said CSX's decision to raise its capital expenditures to $1.8 billion from $1.7 billion reflected that optimism.

Nearly a year after Warren Buffett sent shock waves through Wall Street by buying Burlington Northern Santa Ferailroad for $26 billion, Ward said he doubts any additional buyouts or consolidation are in the cards for the North American rail business.

"I don't think there will be rail mergers," he said. "If you look at it, there are two big railroads in the East, two big railroads in the West, and two big railroads in Canada. I think all of us, as we look at our businesses ... we have a lot of opportunity to create a lot of value for our shareholders and generate money to create new infrastructure and jobs with our existing businesses."

Rail mergers, he said, are more complicated than other deals because they require so much regulatory approval -- a process that can create "two to three years of distractions for a company."

"So, No. 1, no one has a pocketbook as big as Warren Buffett to buy another big railroad. And I also think there is no real impetus to combine any of the big railroads." (Reuters)