The Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR) in partnership with the European Commission published a new report on European inland navigation.
Transport demand saw a downward trend in the first half of 2023. In the two countries with the highest transport performance, Germany and the Netherlands, there was a decline in transport performance by 8.5% and 7.7% respectively.
With regard to the different types of cargo, the strongest decrease in percentage terms was observed for container transport, followed by dry cargo transport. This was a consequence of the decline in world trade and industry production.
Cargo transport on the entire Rhine reached 131.7 million tonnes in the first half year of 2023 (-10.8%). Also, with regard to the Rhine, container transport and dry bulk transport were the hardest hit by the recession and the slowdown in world trade. On the Danube, dry bulk product segments (coal, iron ore, grain, etc.) were amongst the cargo segments that suffered the most. Overall, the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine continued to impact considerably freight transport on inland waterways in the first semester of 2023.
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