In 2025, the EU imported 1.1 billion tonnes of goods from non-EU countries by sea, valued at €1 270 billion. Exports transported by sea totalled 0.5 billion tonnes, worth €1 069 billion.
Maritime transport was the main mode of transport for the EU international trade in goods in 2025. It dominated the physical volume of trade, accounting for 73.3% of all imports and 72.6% of all exports by weight. When it comes to value, it represented a smaller share, with 50.2% of import value and 40.4% of export value.
By contrast, air transport played a minor role in terms of volume but a more prominent role in terms of value. Just 0.3% of imports and 2.9% of exports were moved by air, yet these shipments made up 20.7% of the total import value and 29.1% of the total export value.
Road transport also registered a higher share in value (19.5% imports and 24.9% exports) than in volume (6.0% imports and 17.4% exports).
For rail transport, the volume (2.6% imports and 2.9% exports) exceeded the value (1.2% imports and 1.3% exports).
Source dataset: ds-059334
This news article marks World Maritime Day on 24 September.