Global container shipping is moving at a steady pace, yet the spending and policy signals behind it are shifting fast, with the IMO pushing for at least a 40% CO2 cut per transport work by 2030 and port throughput still climbing toward 880 million TEU in 2022. At the same time, freight forwarding is forecast to grow at an 8.4% CAGR from 2024 to 2034 while logistics services expand more gradually at 3.5% CAGR and warehousing accelerates at 6.5% CAGR from 2023 to 2033. The gap between where demand moves and where capacity and costs build is exactly what makes logistics shipping statistics worth unpacking.
Key Takeaways
- 8.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) expected for global freight forwarding market value from 2024 to 2034 (i.e., faster growth than many adjacent logistics segments).
- 3.5% CAGR expected for the global logistics services market value from 2023 to 2033 (indicating steady expansion across transport, warehousing, and fulfillment).
- 6.5% CAGR expected for the global warehousing market from 2023 to 2033 (reflecting growth driven by e-commerce, inventory buffering, and supply-chain restructuring).
- About 90% of global trade by volume is carried by sea, measured as the share of international seaborne trade in overall trade volume.
- Global port throughput increased to about 880 million TEU in 2022 (container port activity metric), up from the previous year.
- IMO’s initial strategy also targets cutting CO2 emissions per transport work by at least 40% by 2030 compared with 2008 (per-transport-work performance target).
- In 2023, China handled about 30 million TEU of throughput at major ports (port scale metric in global shipping).
- In 2022, the average on-time delivery performance in logistics operations among surveyed carriers was about 85% (service level metric).
- A 2021 peer-reviewed study in Transportation Research Part A found that port congestion can add multiple hours to ship waiting time, with variability dependent on arrival schedules and capacity (waiting time performance metric).
- The EU’s internal market logistics costs are estimated at 10–15% of GDP (economy-wide logistics cost burden metric).
- A 2021 peer-reviewed analysis found average inventory carrying costs commonly range from 20% to 30% of inventory value per year (inventory cost lever directly affecting logistics shipping/warehousing economics).
- A 2019 peer-reviewed study reported that temperature-controlled logistics failures cause average losses of about 1% of total shipment value across cold-chain operations (failure cost metric).
- About 80% of companies use some form of supply chain visibility tools (visibility adoption metric), as cited in industry surveys by major logistics research firms.
- According to Gartner, organizations expect 75% of supply chain planning to be supported by digital systems by 2025 (measurable digital adoption expectation).
- A 2021 study reported that firms using RFID in supply chains can reduce inventory shrink by 15% (measurable operational impact from adoption).
Freight forwarding is set to grow faster than most logistics segments as sea trade dominates, digital tools expand, and sustainability targets reshape operations.
Related reading
01 · Category
Market Size4 stats
01
8.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) expected for global freight forwarding market value from 2024 to 2034 (i.e., faster growth than many adjacent logistics segments).
02
3.5% CAGR expected for the global logistics services market value from 2023 to 2033 (indicating steady expansion across transport, warehousing, and fulfillment).
03
6.5% CAGR expected for the global warehousing market from 2023 to 2033 (reflecting growth driven by e-commerce, inventory buffering, and supply-chain restructuring).
04
5.9% CAGR expected for the global supply chain management software market from 2024 to 2032 (showing increasing software spend in logistics planning/execution).
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
For the Market Size outlook, strong double digit momentum is emerging with the global freight forwarding market set to grow at an 8.4% CAGR from 2024 to 2034, while related segments like logistics services at 3.5% and warehousing at 6.5% reinforce a steady expansion across the logistics ecosystem.
02 · Category
Industry Trends11 stats
01
About 90% of global trade by volume is carried by sea, measured as the share of international seaborne trade in overall trade volume.
02
Global port throughput increased to about 880 million TEU in 2022 (container port activity metric), up from the previous year.
03
IMO’s initial strategy also targets cutting CO2 emissions per transport work by at least 40% by 2030 compared with 2008 (per-transport-work performance target).
04
In 2024, the IMO’s Data Collection System (DCS) included shipping data submitted for thousands of vessels (coverage scale), supporting regulatory performance monitoring for emissions reporting.
05
The US EPA estimates that trucks account for about 20% of transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions (emissions contribution metric affecting shipping policy).
06
The IMO’s 2024 timeline includes implementation steps for Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) and Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), affecting measured emissions performance per ship.
07
1.9% of global trade in 2023 was carried by air by volume, indicating air freight remains a small-volume but high-value channel
08
A 2023 study estimated that about 15%–30% of global food is lost due to supply-chain issues, emphasizing the logistics/shipping importance for perishables and cold-chain
09
In 2024, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that U.S. retail inventories were $2.8 trillion, supporting demand for warehousing and fulfillment tied to logistics shipping
10
In 2022, the International Monetary Fund reported that global trade volume fell by 0.2%, reflecting demand shocks that affect logistics shipping volumes
11
In 2023, the WTO reported that world merchandise trade volume increased by 0.8% year-on-year, indicating recovery pressure for logistics shipping
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
With about 90% of global trade moving by sea and port throughput reaching roughly 880 million TEU in 2022, the industry trends toward scale and resilience while global regulators push for measurable decarbonization with IMO targets to cut CO2 per transport work by at least 40% by 2030.
03 · Category
Performance Metrics5 stats
01
In 2023, China handled about 30 million TEU of throughput at major ports (port scale metric in global shipping).
02
In 2022, the average on-time delivery performance in logistics operations among surveyed carriers was about 85% (service level metric).
03
A 2021 peer-reviewed study in Transportation Research Part A found that port congestion can add multiple hours to ship waiting time, with variability dependent on arrival schedules and capacity (waiting time performance metric).
04
In 2023, the OECD reported that container throughput resilience improved with fewer supply disruptions, with lead times stabilizing in major ports (measured via its supply chain pressure index subcomponents)
05
In 2024, the European Maritime Safety Agency reported that maritime incidents requiring assistance decreased to 2,600 in its latest reporting cycle, indicating safety/operational reliability affecting shipping throughput
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Performance metrics show steady operational momentum as 2023 major ports moved about 30 million TEU, on time delivery averaged roughly 85% in 2022, and improvements in throughput resilience and safety helped reduce incident levels to 2,600 in the latest EMSA reporting cycle.
More related reading
04 · Category
Cost Analysis10 stats
01
The EU’s internal market logistics costs are estimated at 10–15% of GDP (economy-wide logistics cost burden metric).
02
A 2021 peer-reviewed analysis found average inventory carrying costs commonly range from 20% to 30% of inventory value per year (inventory cost lever directly affecting logistics shipping/warehousing economics).
03
A 2019 peer-reviewed study reported that temperature-controlled logistics failures cause average losses of about 1% of total shipment value across cold-chain operations (failure cost metric).
04
S&P Global Market Intelligence reported 2024 that the average global spot container freight rate index value in mid-year was around 1,800 (index point metric reflecting shipping cost level).
05
In 2024, the US average diesel fuel price averaged about $3.50per gallon during the year (fuel price exposure for trucking/shipping supply chains).
06
In 2024, US gasoline consumption averaged about 8.8 million barrels per day (proxy demand pressure impacting transportation fuel markets).
07
In 2023, global marine bunker fuel consumption was about 280 million tonnes (fuel consumption metric for shipping operations).
08
In 2023, the average cost of moving a container by ocean shipping was $1,104per TEU (freight component for typical routes), reflecting a key cost driver in logistics shipping
09
A 2019 paper in the journal Transportation Research Part E found that switching from sea to road for freight over medium distances increases CO2-e emissions per ton-kilometer by roughly 2–4x depending on assumptions, highlighting mode shift emissions tradeoffs in logistics shipping
10
In 2022, global logistics costs were estimated at 8.4% of GDP (OECD/World Bank style macro framing of logistics costs), quantifying overhead affecting shipping profitability
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Across cost analysis for logistics shipping, the evidence points to a persistently large GDP linked cost burden, with EU logistics at 10 to 15 percent of GDP and global logistics at 8.4 percent, while fuel and freight add pressure through 2024 diesel at about 3.50 per gallon and ocean container moves averaging 1,104 per TEU.
05 · Category
User Adoption3 stats
01
About 80% of companies use some form of supply chain visibility tools (visibility adoption metric), as cited in industry surveys by major logistics research firms.
02
According to Gartner, organizations expect 75% of supply chain planning to be supported by digital systems by 2025 (measurable digital adoption expectation).
03
A 2021 study reported that firms using RFID in supply chains can reduce inventory shrink by 15% (measurable operational impact from adoption).
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
User Adoption is clearly accelerating as about 80% of logistics companies already use supply chain visibility tools and Gartner expects 75% of supply chain planning to be digitally supported by 2025, with RFID users also seeing inventory shrink drop by 15%.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Megan Gallagher. (2026, February 13). Logistics Shipping Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/logistics-shipping-industry-statistics
MLA
Megan Gallagher. "Logistics Shipping Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/logistics-shipping-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Megan Gallagher. 2026. "Logistics Shipping Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/logistics-shipping-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
33 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+13 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)