Total freight volumes in October 2021 were 7.6% below 2020. Net adjustments for structural route changes reduced growth 2.3 ppt to -9.9%.
The decrease in total volumes was due to lower volumes on UK routes compared to 2020 as stockbuilding in the UK ahead of Brexit started to boost volumes in October 2020.
In addition, the current supply chain bottlenecks have led to a slowdown in UK volumes as some importers and exporters temporarily capped volumes during the month to avoid further congestion of supply chains. Channel and North Sea volumes were thus below 2020 in October.
The Mediterranean business unit continued to carry volumes above 2020 while Baltic Sea volumes were below 2020 as capacity on one route was reduced from two ferries in 2020 to one ferry in October 2021.
Volumes for the Mediterranean and Baltic Sea business units were above 2019 in October 2021 while the supply chain bottlenecks impacting the UK decreased volumes in Channel and North Sea to below 2019.
