In 2025, for the fourth consecutive year, the Port of Rotterdam has suffered a decline in freight traffic that last year year was -1.7% having been handled 428.4 million tonnes of cargo compared to 435.8 million tonnes of tons in 2024. In terms of total traffic volume, the October-December period of 2025 was the best quarter of the year with a total volume of 108.3 million tons of goods and an increase of more than +1% on the same quarter of the previous year.

In detail, in the fourth quarter of last year, only the containerized goods amounted to 32.7 million tons (+1%) with a handling of containers that was equal to to 3.5 million TEUs (+3%). According to data released by the authority port of the Dutch port, there has been a strong imbalance among the percentage changes in container volumes at unloading, Results of 1.2 million TEUs (-34%), and those of containers at boarding, which totaled 2.3 million TEUs (+44%). The institution The port has not yet released information on container volumes filled and empty spaces handled in the period October-December of 2025, but, based on the shares of the two traffic flows of the quarters full containers - equal to 25% of the total - should have stood at 876 thousand TEUs (+8%) and the empty ones at 2.6 million TEUs (+2%).

The quarterly increase in other goods was more pronounced which amounted to 7.7 million tonnes (+9%), of of which 6.2 million tonnes of rolling stock (+5%) and 1.5 million tonnes of tons of other cargo (+25%). Bulk cargo is also on the rise liquid with a total of 50.7 million tonnes (+5%), including 25.3 million tonnes of crude oil (+6%), 13.4 million tonnes of crude oil tons of refined petroleum products (+2%), 3.4 million tons of liquefied natural gas (+17%) and 8.6 million tons of tons of other liquid bulk (0%). Dry bulk is down 9% to 17.3 million tonnes, of which 6.9 million tonnes tonnes of iron ore and scrap (-7%), 4.7 million tonnes of tons of coal (-17%), 2.1 million tons of products (-25%) and 3.5 million tons of other dry bulk (+17%).

In the last quarter of 2025, global freight traffic arriving in the Dutch port, amounting to 76.3 million tons, is almost stable result, while the outgoing result, equal to 32.0 million tons, marked an increase of +6%.

In the whole of 2025, containerized traffic alone was of 133.2 million tons, with a decrease of -0.2% previous year, and was carried out with a Container handling of more than 14.2 million TEUs (+3,1%). The port authority specified that during 2025 the traffic volume fluctuated due to adverse traffic weather conditions and strikes at the beginning and end of the year. In addition, the body specified that the growth in terms of 20' containers handled can be explained by the increase in +9.3% in import volumes from Asia. In the second Imports increased more than half of the year quickly compared to the first half of the year. In addition, the increase in import containers, lower export volumes due to the deterioration of Europe's competitive position and the decline in the transhipment traffic, have resulted in a higher volume of empty containers. The Port Authority has announced that even the volume of container traffic to and from North America continued to increase in the second half of the year, with a growth of +13.6% generated by changes in the structure of the alliances between shipping companies that have led to a increase in the number of services, although, due to congestion in the handling of containers on the quayside, a part of the significant traffic volume - the Authority highlighted - is has been diverted to other ports.

In 2025, ro-ro traffic increased by +0.9% reaching 25.6 million tons. The Dutch port of call recorded limited growth in rolling stock volumes to and from the United Kingdom due to the low economic growth of this important market. Other miscellaneous goods increased by +4.6% rising to 6.1 million tons, an increase due to the higher production of steel products, to the supply of foundations for offshore wind farms, steel pipes for the project Porthos and the increase in aluminum that is sold in quantity higher rates for European companies due to import duties in the United States.

Total dry bulk decreased by -6.5% falling to 66.6 million tons. In particular, the volumes of have fallen sharply by -11.5%, being 26.3 million tonnes, given that - he explained The Port Authority - The Competitive Position of the Industry European steel industry remains under pressure due to high levels of energy and CO2 prices and cheap imports from other nations. Coal traffic fell by -8.7% to 17.3 million tonnes, a decrease that caused by a sharp reduction in demand for coal from coke for the European steel industry. Coal traffic for Energy use increased in the first half of the year as a result of low wind production and high demand for electricity that increased the duration of operation of coal-fired power plants in the Netherlands and Germany, while in the second half of the year it was used less coal for electricity generation thanks to higher yields from renewable sources and the drop in gas prices. The Traffic in agricultural products rose by +6.3% to 10.9 million tonnes, with volumes that were particularly in the first half of 2025 and with growth that has was driven by the entry into operation of a new terminal for Solid bulk cargo. Other dry bulk cargo decreased by -1.6% to 12.0 million tonnes.

The overall figure for 2025 for liquid bulk is 197.0 million tonnes (-1.5%), with oil crude oil which increased by +3.4% to 101.2 million tonnes, while industrial petroleum products decreased by -12.6% to 48.5 million tonnes. Gas liquefied natural natural environment, driven by the need to reconstitute gas reserves in Europe, rose to 13.0 million tons (+15.1%), while other liquid products fell by -3.1% to 34.3 million tonnes.