Europe Freight Forwarding Market Outlook to 2025

The report titled “Europe Freight Forwarding Market Outlook to 2025 – By Country (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and Others) and By Mode of Transportation (Road, Sea, Air, Rail, and Inland Waterways)” provides a comprehensive analysis of the freight forwarding market in Europe. The report especially focuses on the freight forwarding market of six European countries namely Austria, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, and Sweden with a detailed country profile of each of the country mentioned above.

Europe Freight Forwarding Market: The freight forwarding market in Europe is observed to be at the growth stage, with the competition being fragmented owing to the presence of numerous players. All the major global freight forwarders operate in Europe, with DHL, DB Schenker, Kuehne + Nagel, and DSV being based in Europe. The major players strive to grow in the market through the adoption of new and advanced technology with technology being one of the key differentiators in the market. The freight forwarding industry in Europe is showing due to boom in emerging markets like Romania, Greece, and Poland, as well as increasing adoption of technology like IoT, data analytics, and blockchain.

By Mode of Transportation (Road, Sea, Air, Rail, and Inland Waterways): Road freight dominates the freight forwarding industry in a majority of countries in Europe. Road freight is dominant due to better infrastructure and flexibility. The second most important mode after the road is sea freight, which is primarily used for international freight forwarding both within and outside Europe. Goods are also transported from the ports to the European hinterland through road and rail.

By Country (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, and others): The largest freight forwarding market in Europe is Germany due to its central location in Europe, a large industrial base, good infrastructure, and the presence of many freight forwarding players make it a large contributor to overall Europe’s market. Following Germany, Spain, France, the UK, and Italy are the largest markets. Luxembourg, Greece, Romania, and Cyprus are some of the growing markets in the region.

Competitive Scenario

The European freight forwarding market is highly fragmented with the presence of both large international players and domestic players. Competition varies from country to country, with some countries being majorly dominated by local players sand others being dominated by international players. The industry is at a growth stage with a focus on regional expansion by the medium level companies and tech disruptions by the major players.

Austria: Road and rail are the two important modes of transportation for Austria, with it being a landlocked country. Austria’s important strategic location in Central Europe makes it an important gateway to South-Eastern Europe and the Balkans region. With investments in its rail infrastructure, Austria is planning to shift a significant part of its freight volumes to rail transport to reduce its carbon footprint.

Belgium: Belgium’s important strategic location in the heart of Western Europe makes it an important hub for e-commerce in Europe. Belgium’s main port, Antwerp is the second largest port in Europe and accounts for the majority of its international trade. Belgium’s roads are facing congestion problems sand due to this many hours are wasted stuck in gridlocks. To solve this problem, Infrabel, the state railway company has planned to invest in its rail infrastructure to decongest the roads.

Germany: Germany’s central location in Europe, highly developed economy, and good transport infrastructure all contribute to it being the largest freight transportation market in Europe. Germany is also home to many largest freight forwarders in the world, including DHL, DB Schenker, and Kuehne + Nagel. Germany is currently focusing on revamping its infrastructure, particularly in the rail and inland waterway sectors to shift to more sustainable transportation.

Netherlands: The Netherlands is home to the largest port in Europe, Rotterdam, which serves as the major port of call for the North Sea region and for accessing the European hinterland as well. The Netherlands is also the largest market for inland waterways in Europe due to the port of Rotterdam having good waterway connections through the Rhine River, and ships a significant volume of goods through river transportation. The government has announced a plan to invest in the improvement of railway and river infrastructure to help shift induce the modal shift from road to rail and inland waterways.

Poland: Poland is an important road freight market in Europe, with road freight overwhelmingly dominating the freight forwarding market in the country. Poland’s truckers are also responsible for a significant portion of the European trucking market owing to lesser wages compared to other developed economies. Poland’s growing manufacturing sector is expected to boost the freight forwarding market further in the future. With the Belt and Road Initiative, trade with China by rail is also expected to rise.

Sweden: Sweden is an important market in the Scandinavian region and the Baltic Sea. The port of Gothenburg is a major port in the Nordic region and serves as the primary port of the country.  Cross-border trade with Norway, Denmark, and Finland occur mainly via road and short sea shipping. Sweden is focusing currently on reducing its carbon footprint by reducing its dependence on the road for freight transportation by helping develop sustainable logistics infrastructure in the country.

Future Outlook and Projections

The market is expected to grow at a positive single digit CAGR and the key growth drivers would include increasing investment in the transport infrastructure through the TEN-T infrastructure policy, which is expected to be completed by 2030. There is a continued effort by industry lobbyists to force freight volumes from road to rail. With the Belt and Road Initiative, trade with China and other Asian countries is expected to rise and this will boost the freight forwarding markets especially in Eastern Europe.

Key Topics Covered in the Report

• Transport Infrastructure in Europe
• Europe Freight Forwarding Market Overview
• Europe Freight Forwarding Market Size
• Country Profiles (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden)
• Competitive Scenario in Europe Freight Forwarding Market
• Technological Disruptions in Europe Freight Forwarding Market
• Trends and Developments in Europe Freight Forwarding Market
• Issues and Challenges in Europe Freight Forwarding Market
• Company Profiles of Major Players in Europe Freight Forwarding Market
• Europe Freight Forwarding Market Future Outlook and Projections
• Europe Freight Forwarding Future Market Size
• Europe Freight Forwarding Market Future Segmentation
• Analyst Recommendations