Europe’s largest logistics groups entered the final quarter of 2025 facing a familiar challenge: solid volumes but fragile margins. Kuehne + Nagel, DSV, GXO and C.H. Robinson all reported broadly stable revenues yet double-digit swings in profitability, underlining how persistent overcapacity, soft industrial demand and currency headwinds continue to define the post-boom freight cycle.
Across the board, road transport divisions showed early signs of stabilisation, but profit recovery remains slow. DSV and C.H. Robinson managed to grow truckload and LTL volumes slightly, suggesting that excess capacity is finally being absorbed. However, European road networks are still under-utilised, particularly at Kuehne + Nagel, which has now turned to structural cost cuts to restore margins.
The pattern in freight forwarding was more uniform and more painful. Overcapacity in ocean freight, weak transatlantic demand and falling yields hit both Kuehne + Nagel and C.H. Robinson’s forwarding arms, while DSV’s Air & Sea business also saw organic EBIT decline. GXO, operating mainly in contract logistics rather than forwarding, stood out with steady growth and high cash conversion, showing the relative resilience of warehousing and fulfilment models in a low-rate environment.
Taken together, the results confirm a shift in strategy among global logistics players: from chasing volume to protecting margin and cash flow. Cost discipline, network optimisation and automation are now the main levers of performance, and the deciding factors that will shape how quickly Europe’s road-freight market can recover in 2026.
Kuehne + Nagel tightens its belt as Europe’s road freight stalls
Kuehne + Nagel has launched a CHF 200 million cost-reduction programme after a sharp fall in profits driven by weak European road demand and continued yield pressure in forwarding markets.
Between January and September 2025, the Swiss logistics group recorded net turnover of CHF 18.5 billion, up 3% year-on-year, while gross profit rose 1% to CHF 6.5 billion. Profitability, however, deteriorated: EBIT fell 17% to CHF 1.03 billion, and net earnings declined 18% to CHF 725 million. In the third quarter alone, EBIT dropped 37% to CHF 285 million, including a CHF 14 million currency impact.
The Road Logistics division remained under strain as low industrial output and overcapacity continued to weigh on rates. Revenue held steady at CHF 2.6 billion, but EBIT fell 24% to CHF 67 million. The company said customs-clearance and trade-consulting demand in the United States partly offset the downturn.
In Sea Logistics, EBIT plunged 57% in Q3 to CHF 111 million as overcapacity and a strong franc cut into margins, while Air Logistics saw volume growth of 7% but a 23% decline in EBIT to CHF 92 million. Contract Logistics remained stable, with EBIT unchanged at CHF 161 million and new growth in healthcare and e-commerce.
The cost-reduction plan, including 1,000 – 1,500 job cuts and increased automation, is expected to deliver annual savings of at least CHF 200 million by 2026. Full-year 2025 EBIT guidance has been lowered to above CHF 1.3 billion.
DSV accelerates Schenker integration as European road market begins to stabilise
DSV’s third-quarter results highlight strong cash generation and rapid progress in integrating the recently acquired Schenker business — even as freight markets remain subdued.
Between July and September 2025, the Danish logistics group reported EBIT before special items of DKK 5.43 billion, up from DKK 4.42 billion a year earlier, driven largely by Schenker’s contribution of DKK 1.46 billion.
Revenue rose to DKK 71.98 billion ( +63% ), though organic growth slipped 0.4% as global trade slowed. Adjusted free cash flow reached DKK 4.28 billion, giving a 96% cash-conversion ratio.
The Road division — central to DSV’s European operations — produced EBIT of DKK 798 million in Q3, up from DKK 514 million last year but down 16% organically. Activity remained muted, particularly in the automotive sector, and low utilisation continued to weigh on margins.
Management said it is redesigning and consolidating its European road network to improve efficiency, with terminal reductions and tighter capacity alignment already under way.
Air & Sea delivered EBIT of DKK 3.53 billion, down 6% organically as overcapacity and weaker sea-freight yields offset growth in technology cargo. Contract Logistics performed best, posting a 10% organic EBIT increase to DKK 1.10 billion, helped by stronger utilisation and technology clients.
DSV has narrowed its full-year EBIT forecast to DKK 19.5–20.5 billion and expects roughly DKK 800 million in Schenker-related synergies this year.
CEO Jens H. Lund said integration “is progressing faster than planned”, with 30% of activities expected to be combined by year-end.
GXO delivers record revenue and strong cash flow as contract logistics momentum builds
GXO Logistics reported record quarterly revenue and resilient cash generation in the third quarter of 2025, reaffirming its full-year outlook despite an uneven global trading environment.
The world’s largest pure-play contract logistics provider posted revenue of $3.4 billion, up 8% year-on-year, including 4% organic growth. Net income rose to $60 million, while adjusted EBITDA increased 13% to $251 million, lifting the adjusted EBITDA margin to 7.4%.
Operating cash flow reached $232 million, with free cash flow of $187 million, almost 70% higher than a year earlier. The company closed the quarter with net debt of $2.36 billion, equivalent to 2.7 times trailing adjusted EBITDA, a level management described as “comfortably within target range.”
GXO signed $280 million in new business, 24% more than in 2024, and maintained a $2.3 billion commercial pipeline, led by customers in omnichannel retail, technology, and industrial manufacturing. The ongoing integration of Wincanton, completed earlier this year, is said to be “progressing swiftly,” with synergy targets on track.
Chief executive Patrick Kelleher, who took over in August, said GXO is “building from a position of strength” and entering a “new era of growth.”
For 2025, the company reaffirmed guidance for organic revenue growth of 3.5–6.5%, adjusted EBITDA of $865–885 million, and adjusted EPS of $2.43–2.63.
C.H. Robinson grows truckload and LTL volumes despite weak freight market
C.H. Robinson reported a solid third quarter in 2025, outperforming a still-depressed freight market through cost discipline and margin gains in its North American Surface Transportation (NAST) business.
Total revenue fell 11% year-on-year to $4.1 billion, reflecting lower ocean and truckload pricing and the divestiture of its European surface operations. Gross profit slipped 4% to $692 million, but income from operations rose 23% to $221 million, lifting the adjusted operating margin to 31.3%.
Net income increased 68% to $163 million, with diluted EPS up to $1.34, while operating cash flow more than doubled to $275 million.
The NAST division, which includes truckload and LTL, led the performance. Revenue grew 1.1% to $3.0 billion, and adjusted gross profit climbed 5.6% to $444 million, driven by a 3% increase in combined truckload and LTL volumes. The division’s operating margin expanded to 38.9%, supported by eight consecutive quarters of gross-margin improvement and continued productivity gains.
In contrast, Global Forwarding remained under pressure as ocean and air markets weakened; revenue dropped 31% to $786 million, and EBIT declined 44% to $49 million.
Customs brokerage and airfreight improved, but ocean volumes and yields fell sharply.
CEO Dave Bozeman said C.H. Robinson is “a fundamentally different company” executing a lean, AI-driven strategy designed to scale efficiently.
Despite soft demand, he said, the company’s cost structure and automation initiatives position it for “sustainable outperformance” once freight volumes recover.
After selling its European surface transportation business earlier this year, C.H. Robinson’s focus is now squarely on North America, where truckload and LTL volumes are showing early recovery despite soft global demand.
