Water levels on the Rhine River, one of Europe's busiest shipping arteries, have fallen to another record low, official data indicated on Friday, hampering transport and production.
The water level gauge at the chokepoint of Kaub near the city of Koblenz fell to two centimetres (0.8 inches) late Thursday, inland navigation agency WSV data showed, before rising back to five centimetres early on Friday.
This is the lowest level since records began in the 1800s. A spokesperson for the agency said the new record had yet to be verified, but that, "unaudited raw data suggest that historical records are being broken."
The riverbed is about one metre deeper than the gauge, which has been traditionally used to measure local levels.
Low water levels on the Rhine have become a headwind again for Germany's economy, the country's leading economic institutes said on Thursday.
"Low water on key waterways is making it harder to transport products and is causing problems particularly for the chemical industry," said Oliver Holtemoeller of IWH institute, adding that output would strengthen again towards year-end once water levels return to normal.
If the Kaub gauge falls below 78 centimetres for 30 straight days, as was the case in 2022 and 2018, German industrial production typically falls by about one per cent, according to economic institute IfW.
(Reporting by Friederike Heine and Maria Martinez Editing by Ludwig Burger)
