Container traffic from Asia to Europe surged 15.5% year on year to 1.68 million TEUs in November 2025, marking the first annual increase in two months and setting a new November record, according to data compiled by the Japan Maritime Center (JMC) based on figures from the U.K.’s Container Trade Statistics (CTS).
For the January–November 2025 period, Asia–Europe container trade reached 17.98 million TEUs, representing an increase of 9.3% compared with the same period a year earlier.
China and Hong Kong remained the dominant export origins, shipping 1.33 million TEUs in November, up 17.6% year on year. Exports from other parts of Northeast Asia totaled 143,088 TEUs, an increase of 10.6%, while Southeast Asia contributed 210,584 TEUs, up 6.8%. Chinese exports in particular continued to grow strongly on trades outside the U.S. market.
By destination, Northern Europe received 991,898 TEUs, an increase of 14.7%. Volumes to the Western Mediterranean rose 12.8% to 334,499 TEUs, while shipments to the Eastern Mediterranean climbed 20.7% to 352,444 TEUs. Growth across Mediterranean trades was supported by improving economic conditions in southern Europe.
