DB Schenker is the largest overland transport operator in Europe, according to rankings released today (10th June) in Transport Intelligence’s latest report, European Road Transport & Logistics 2009.
The German freight giant was almost twice the size of its nearest rival, SNCF (Transport & Logistics) in when taking into account all road and rail freight revenues. DHL Freight came in third.
When removing rail freight transport (but not rail forwarding) revenues, DB Schenker remains at number one, while DHL moves into second place, followed by Danish road freight operator DSV.
The report also provides details of the growth of the European market as a whole, as well as on an individual country basis. At the European level Ti established that the market grew by 3.8 per cent in 2008.
This was influenced by growth in volumes in the early part of the year and rising fuel prices. The slump in volumes which road and rail freight operators have experienced in the second half of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 will mean that it will take to 2012 for the market to recover.
John Manners-Bell, CEO of Transport Intelligence said: “Although 2008 saw reasonable headline growth rates, this was predominantly as a result of a surge in the oil price which most freight operators will have found impossible to fully pass on to clients.
“The market in Western Europe was then hit by dramatically falling volumes in the second half although some countries in Eastern Europe have held up well.”
