This statistical release provides information on trends and patterns in the handling of freight traffic at UK sea ports in terms of cargo (units and tonnage) and the route taken.

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to. You are welcome to contact us directly by emailing maritime.stats@dft.gov.uk with any comments about how we meet these standards.

Overview of port freight statistics

In 2025, all UK ports handled a total of 428.3 million tonnes. Tonnage showed little change, decreasing by less than 1% from 2024 to 2025, following a 1% decline last year.

Below is a summary of the main points from the latest port freight trends. In 2025:

major port traffic showed little change, decreasing by less than 1% from 2024, while minor port traffic declined by 2%
while overall international traffic remained at similar levels to 2024, imports increased by 2% to 237.5 million tonnes and exports decreased by 4% to 98.6 million tonnes
domestic traffic decreased by 3%, driven by declining coastwise movements of other dry bulk
contrasting trends were observed across cargo groups, with tonnage declines in liquid bulk (down 2% from 2024), dry bulk (down 3%) and roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) traffic (down 2%) being offset by increases in container traffic (up 10%)
liquid bulk saw the largest absolute decline of all cargo groups, down 3.1 million tonnes from 2024, largely driven by declining crude oil traffic, although increases in liquefied natural gas (LNG) did mitigate the magnitude of this overall decline
container tonnage had the largest absolute increase of all cargo groups, up 6.2 million tonnes from 2024, largely driven by additional container traffic at the Port of London (up 38%) following the opening of a fourth berth at London Gateway

In 2025, we introduced the collection and reporting of two new cargo categories.

Wood pellets are compressed biomass made from wood waste, including wood chip for use as a renewable fuel source (previously reported under ‘other dry bulk’).
Wind farm products includes blades, tower sections for wind turbines, casings and cables (previously reported under ‘other general cargo’).

New statistics of these cargo categories are explored in more detail in the cargo trends chapter.

Postponement of arrivals statistics publication

Following a user consultation period, the Department for Transport is postponing publication of the arrivals statistical outputs (reports and tables) until later this year to allow time for a full methodological review. Further details can be found in the arrivals chapter.

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Published 29 July 2026

Port freight annual statistics: 2025

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