Logistics giants lift profits despite weak freight demand and volatile global trade

The figures point to a common theme across the sector: growth is increasingly being driven not simply by freight volumes, but by cost discipline, capacity management, automation, contract logistics and the ability to exploit disruption in global supply chains.

DSV benefits from Schenker integration

DSV reported second-quarter revenue of DKK 76.7 billion, up 23% from DKK 62.0 billion a year earlier, as the Danish logistics group continued the integration of Schenker. Gross profit rose to DKK 20.3 billion from DKK 17.2 billion. EBIT before special items increased by around 33% year on year to DKK 6.26 billion, supported by stronger results in Air & Sea and Contract Logistics. The company said the improvement had been achieved despite challenging and volatile market conditions.

The integration of Schenker remains central to DSV’s performance following the transformational acquisition. The group has also been working to extract synergies from the combined organisation while maintaining commercial momentum.

Following the first-half performance, DSV narrowed its 2026 outlook for EBIT before special items, signalling greater visibility over the combined business as the integration progresses.

Kuehne+Nagel raises outlook as air freight surges

Kuehne+Nagel delivered one of the clearest improvements among the major European freight forwarders. Second-quarter net turnover rose 8% year on year to CHF 6.6 billion, or 11% after adjusting for currency movements. EBIT climbed 11% to CHF 381 million, while net profit increased 10% to CHF 276 million.

Air Logistics was the standout performer. Revenue increased 20% to CHF 2.2 billion while EBIT jumped 35% to CHF 154 million. The company attributed the improvement partly to changes in its customer portfolio and market-share gains, particularly in the technology sector. Air freight volume reached 1.1 million tonnes during the first half of 2026.

Road Logistics also delivered stronger figures despite the difficult European freight environment. Second-quarter revenue increased 14% to CHF 1.0 billion and EBIT rose 29% to CHF 36 million. Kühne+Nagel said it gained market share across all regions, with customs activities also contributing positively.

Contract Logistics generated revenue of CHF 1.2 billion, up 2%, while EBIT rose 21% to CHF 51 million.

Ocean Logistics remained exposed to weaker European exports. Nevertheless, continued efficiency improvements and gains on Asia-Europe and Asia-North America routes helped the division achieve EBIT of CHF 140 million on revenue of CHF 2.2 billion.

Chief executive Stefan Paul also highlighted the accelerating introduction of artificial intelligence across the company, from process optimisation to the deployment of AI agents.

Following the first-half results, Kuehne+Nagel raised its full-year operating EBIT forecast to between CHF 1.35 billion and CHF 1.55 billion.

DHL turns higher revenue into faster profit growth

DHL Group recorded one of the strongest headline increases of the quarter. Group revenue rose 13% to €22.4 billion in Q2, compared with €19.8 billion a year earlier. EBIT increased substantially faster, climbing 30% to €1.9 billion. The EBIT margin consequently improved from 7.2% to 8.3%.

The group said the improvement reflected higher shipment weight in DHL Express, capacity shortages in the international air freight market and the passing on of higher fuel costs. Profitability also benefited from yield and capacity management and structural cost savings under its Fit for Growth programme.

DHL Express was particularly strong, with revenue up 21.5% to €7.13 billion and EBIT surging 64.3% to €1.2 billion. Temporary air freight capacity constraints contributed around €150 million to the division’s result.

Global Forwarding also benefited from higher air and sea freight volumes and volatile freight rates. Revenue increased 17.9% to €5.45 billion and EBIT rose 21.9% to €240 million.

The picture was more mixed in contract logistics. DHL Supply Chain increased revenue by 12.9% to €4.72 billion, with growth across all regions, but EBIT declined 12.1% to €305 million. The comparison was affected by positive one-off items in the previous year.

DHL had already raised its full-year forecast in July and now expects 2026 EBIT of more than €6.5 billion, compared with its previous expectation of more than €6.2 billion. Free cash flow excluding mergers and acquisitions is expected to remain at around €3 billion.

GEODIS holds margin despite weak road transport market

GEODIS presented a more subdued top-line picture for the first half, reflecting particularly difficult conditions in road transport. The French group generated revenue of €5.34 billion and EBITDA of €534 million during the first six months of 2026. Its EBITDA margin nevertheless edged up to 10.0% from 9.9% in the corresponding period last year. At constant scope and exchange rates, revenue declined by €76 million, or 1.4%.

Road transport operations in France, elsewhere in Europe and the United States continued to face weak demand. One notable exception was less-than-truckload transport in Poland, where GEODIS said business was benefiting from the region’s industrial activity.

Distribution & Express recorded growth, supported by higher French volumes and mechanisms compensating for rising fuel costs. Contract Logistics was stable on a like-for-like basis, supported by commercial development and renewal of the customer portfolio.

The group also continued expanding its European road freight footprint. It completed the acquisition of Transports Malherbe in March, strengthening its position in the French full- and part-load market.

Chief executive Marie-Christine Lombard said the results demonstrated the resilience of the company’s model in a volatile market shaped by developments including reshoring, digitalisation and the energy transition.

GXO builds order book as contract logistics keeps growing

Contract logistics specialist GXO generated second-quarter revenue of $3.4 billion, an increase of 4.3% year on year, while organic revenue growth reached 3.4%. Adjusted EBITDA increased from $212 million to $219 million, although reported net income slipped slightly from $28 million to $27 million.

Of greater significance for future growth was GXO’s commercial pipeline. The company secured around $410 million of new business during the quarter, 34% more than a year earlier. Around 40% of the wins came from sectors GXO identifies as strategic growth areas: aerospace and defence, technology, industrial and life sciences.

The company said it had already secured approximately $1 billion in incremental 2026 revenue and $353 million for 2027. Its commercial pipeline had risen from $2.3 billion at the end of the quarter to around $2.7 billion in July.

Chief executive Patrick Kelleher pointed to commercial execution, the GXO Way operating model and AI and automation platform GXO IQ as the company’s three main priorities.

GXO expects organic revenue growth of between 4% and 5% for the full year and adjusted EBITDA of $945 million to $965 million.

C.H. Robinson grows profit faster than freight volumes

C.H. Robinson’s figures underline another increasingly important theme for logistics operators: productivity rather than volume alone. Second-quarter revenue rose 19.3% to $4.9 billion, while adjusted gross profit increased by a more modest 6.5% to $738.0 million. Income from operations climbed 18.4% to $255.7 million and net income rose 22.5% to $186.8 million.

The company said its North American Surface Transportation business continued to outperform the wider freight market. NAST revenue increased 23.1% to $3.6 billion, while adjusted gross profit rose 8.6% and operating income increased 15.8% to $189.8 million.

Combined truckload and LTL volumes were only 1.5% higher year on year, however, highlighting how much of the financial improvement came from pricing, productivity and cost control rather than a broad demand recovery.

C.H. Robinson said average truckload linehaul rates charged to customers were around 25.5% higher, while linehaul costs increased 29.0%. LTL adjusted gross profit climbed 21.7%.

At the same time, average headcount in NAST fell 11.6% compared with the previous year.

Chief executive Dave Bozeman credited the company’s Lean AI strategy and said productivity in both NAST and Global Forwarding had improved by more than 60% since the end of 2022. Global Forwarding itself recorded a 12.4% increase in quarterly revenue to $896.6 million, while operating income rose 18.8% despite adjusted gross profit increasing only 0.7%.

Efficiency becomes the common denominator

The results do not suggest that the freight market has returned to broad-based growth. GEODIS continues to see weak road transport demand across several major markets, while C.H. Robinson describes the North American freight cycle as remaining in a trough. Kühne+Nagel also pointed to weak European export activity.

Instead, the strongest operators are finding other ways to lift earnings. DSV is extracting benefits from the Schenker combination; DHL is using capacity and yield management to turn revenue gains into considerably faster profit growth; Kühne+Nagel is benefiting from air freight and cost efficiencies; and C.H. Robinson is relying heavily on automation and productivity improvements.

Meanwhile, GXO’s new-business pipeline and the contract logistics growth reported by several of the groups indicate that outsourcing, automation and specialised supply-chain services remain important sources of expansion even when conventional freight demand is subdued.

For hauliers and forwarders further down the market, the message from the second-quarter figures is therefore less about a clear recovery in transport volumes than about increasingly sharp competition for margin. In 2026, scale helps, but the ability to control capacity, automate processes and protect yields appears to matter just as much.