The ports of Bremen and Bremerhaven recorded strong growth during the first half of 2026, handling 34.5 million tonnes of seaborne cargo between January and June.
Total throughput increased by 5.9% compared with the same period in 2025, continuing the positive momentum recorded last year. Container traffic was particularly strong, with approximately 2.6 million teu handled, representing growth of 5.7%.
“The positive development in port throughput is an important signal for our economic hub,” said Kristina Vogt, Senator for Economic Affairs, Ports and Transformation of the City of Bremen.
“The current throughput figures underline how important these investments are for the location and its competitiveness.”
Vehicle throughput also increased, reaching around 614,000 vehicles, a rise of 2.4% compared with the first half of 2025.
Growth was recorded across several cargo categories. General cargo throughput rose 5.4% to approximately 30.2 million tonnes, while non-containerised general cargo increased 9.8% to 3.5 million tonnes.
Iron and steel recorded particularly strong growth, with throughput reaching around 851,000 tonnes, an increase of 24.1% year on year. Overall bulk cargo throughput rose 9.6% to approximately 4.3 million tonnes.
Robert Howe, managing director of bremenports, said the results demonstrated that the ports remained well positioned despite challenging market conditions. He highlighted container traffic as a key area of growth and said the figures demonstrated the performance of the ports and their logistics services.
Bremerhaven handled around 29.2 million tonnes between January and June, up 5.3% from the same period last year. Bremen’s city ports recorded approximately 5.3 million tonnes, representing an increase of 9.3%.
The figures leave Bremerhaven as Germany’s second-largest seaport by cargo throughput. Only Hamburg handled more during the period, recording 56.1 million tonnes.
However, Hamburg’s throughput fell 3.1% year on year, contrasting with the continued expansion at Bremen and Bremerhaven and highlighting the differing performance among Germany’s major ports.
