DFDS transported 3.7 million lane metres of freight across its ferry network in May 2025, a 4.5 per cent increase compared to the same month last year. Adjusted for route changes, the increase was 2.5 per cent.
In an investor update, the company said that freight volumes rose year-on-year in the North Sea region, though operations at the port of Gothenburg were negatively affected by a national strike in Sweden towards the end of the month.
In the Mediterranean, volumes also rose due to increased capacity between Tunisia and France and the opening of a new route between Egypt and Italy. However, when adjusted for route changes, Mediterranean volumes fell below 2024 levels, which DFDS attributed to new ferry competition between Turkey and Italy.
According to DFDS, English channel volumes increased compared to 2024 when accounting for new routes to Jersey. Volumes in the Baltic Sea declined year-on-year, primarily due to reduced capacity on one route following vessel redeployments. Freight volumes in the Strait of Gibraltar were higher than the previous year.
Over the last twelve months, from June 2024 to May 2025, DFDS reported that total transported freight reached 41.6 million lane metres, up 4.5 per cent from 39.8 million the year before. Adjusted for route changes, the growth was 0.6 per cent.
Passenger volumes, adjusted for route changes, declined 4.7 per cent in May to 411,000 compared to May 2024, driven largely by lower traffic in the English channel region. The number of cars carried fell 6.3 per cent year-on-year under the same adjustments, the company noted.
Despite the monthly decline, passenger traffic over the twelve-month period rose 17.4 per cent to 6.2 million, up from 5.3 million in the previous year. Adjusted for route changes, the increase was 1.4 per cent.
Route adjustments noted by DFDS included the sale of the Oslo–Frederikshavn–Copenhagen service at the end of October 2025, changes to the Tarifa–Tanger Ville route ahead of its exit in early May, and the addition of Jersey services from late March 2025.