WEC Lines has introduced the updated NWC Portugal (NWC PT) and NWC Canary Islands (NWC CAI) services, offering reduced transit times and fixed departure days. NWC PT now includes the ports of Rotterdam, Moerdijk, Antwerp, Vigo, Leixões, Setúbal and Montoir, while NWC CAI now includes Hamburg, Thamesport, Moerdijk, Bilbao, Vigo, Leixões, Las Palmas, Santa Cruz de Tenerife and Sines.
The German transport sector continues to be under severe pressure amid a stagnant economy, rising costs and increasing bankruptcies. As noted in a new report by the European network of international freight forwarders ELVIS AG for the second quarter of 2025, the expected recovery has not materialized: industrial production in Germany fell by 6.9% in June compared to the previous year, with the sharpest declines recorded in mechanical engineering (-8.7%), the chemical industry (-7.6%) and the automotive industry (-4.8%).
WEC Lines has announced the launch of a direct weekly service connecting Ireland, Belgium and France. The line will be operated by its own 868 TEU vessel on a fixed 7-day rotation, departing Zeebrugge on Thursdays and arriving in Dublin on Sundays. The new route offers faster delivery and increased flexibility for cargo owners, including dry and refrigerated cargo.
Singapore operator Sea Legend is launching a test container service from China to Europe via the Northern Sea Route. The route will connect the ports of Qingdao, Shanghai and Ningbo with European hubs in Felixstowe, Rotterdam, Hamburg and Gdansk. The first vessel will leave Qingdao on September 16 and is scheduled to arrive in Gdansk on October 13 — at the height of the pre-Christmas shipping season.
In the first half of 2025, Luka Koper successfully exploited the opportunities created by the challenging global environment, including the rerouting of shipping lines from Asia and changes in global trade. The Group increased its total seaborne cargo turnover by 1% to 11.4 million tonnes.
LTG Infra, a company of LTG Group and responsible for the implementation of the Rail Baltica European gauge railway project in Lithuania, has opened its own Rail Baltica design division. The initiative is aimed at solving the shortage of design capacities and ensuring the timely implementation of one of the key infrastructure projects in the Baltic States, as well as further development of the European gauge network.
According to the results of the first half of 2025, the three largest seaports in Poland handled 68.5 million tons of cargo, which is 1% more than a year earlier. The main driver of growth was the Szczecin-Świnoujście port complex, where the transshipment of oil cargo increased by 25% – from 3.8 to 4.7 million tons.
At the end of July, the first container vessel Enforcer docked at the Baltic hub of the Port of Gdansk as part of the new Scandinavia West Coast Express (SWX) service connecting Poland with Denmark, Sweden and Lithuania. The weekly route, which includes the ports of Gothenburg, Aarhus, Klaipeda and Gdansk, is designed to improve the efficiency of shipping and become an environmentally friendly alternative to road transport.
Despite the difficult geopolitical situation and the slowdown in the economy, the Port of Hamburg showed strong growth in the first half of 2025 and managed to regain market share from Western European competitors. Sea freight turnover increased by 3.6% to 57.8 million tonnes, primarily due to a jump in the container segment: 4.2 million TEU were handled (+9.3%), including imports that increased by 11.6% and exports by 6.9%. Thanks to new liner services, the port has strengthened its role in international maritime logistics, especially in the directions of Asia and the Baltic Sea.
LTG Cargo’s subsidiary in Ukraine has announced a change in its business model: from September, it will specialize in leasing wagons and locomotives instead of freight forwarding services. LTG Cargo Ukraine already has about 500 Lithuanian wagons at its disposal, which will be effectively used by Ukrainian clients. According to LTG Cargo CEO Egle Šime, railways remain a key supply line for the country during the war, and in the future, the company intends to contribute to the restoration of Ukrainian infrastructure.
