Blue Economy Observatory

Europe's maritime economy,
in real numbers

Live figures on EU short-sea shipping and port freight, pulled directly from Eurostat's open dissemination API alongside real-time AIS vessel tracking across 15 global chokepoints.

90%of EU external trade transported by sea
700k+EU maritime sector jobs at stake
837.1 Mt Goods handled at EU main ports, 2025-Q4 +1.9% year-on-year
58.3% Share of EU maritime freight carried by short-sea shipping, 2024 +1.8pp vs 2023 (56.5%)
1.65 Bn t EU short-sea shipping volume, 2024
183.5 Bn € EU Blue Economy Gross Value Added +4.2% annual growth
3.58 Million Direct EU Maritime Employment
34.5% European-controlled share of the world merchant fleet, by tonnage +2.6% fleet growth in 2025

Top short-sea shipping nations, 2024

Italy, the Netherlands and Spain together handled 46.3% of all EU short-sea shipping tonnage in 2024.

Short-sea vs. other maritime freight, 2024

Short-sea shipping, voyages between EU ports without crossing an ocean, now carries more than half of all EU maritime freight.

Fleet Watch

The world's chokepoints,
watched live

Real ships, tracked by AIS, moving through the straits and canals that decide whether global trade holds or breaks, from the Bering Strait to the Drake Passage, alongside the major trade routes that connect them.

…Vessels tracked now
…Busiest chokepoint
Chokepoint:

Select a chokepoint, trade route, port, or cable on the map for details.

Economic Footprint

EU Blue Economy
€183.5 Billion GVA & 3.58M Jobs

Verified Eurostat data across the EU's 6 core maritime sectors, from shipping and port infrastructure to offshore wind energy and coastal tourism.

EU Blue Economy GVA Distribution by Sector

Source: European Commission Blue Economy Report / Eurostat SBS. Marine transport and ports generate over 46% of total sector GVA.

Market Intelligence

Global Container Shipping Lines
Market Share & Orderbook Dual-Fuel Index

The top 5 global ocean carriers control over 64.5% of worldwide container vessel capacity (30.8 Million TEU total operated fleet).

Top 5 Global Ocean Carriers (Fleet TEU)

    Dual-Fuel Orderbook Transition

    …

    of all container vessel capacity currently on order at shipyards globally is equipped with alternative green propulsion (LNG, Methanol, or Ammonia dual-fuel engines).

    Source: Alphaliner Fleet Statistics

    Regional Traffic

    Maritime Freight
    by European Sea Basin

    How 3.5 Billion tonnes of annual EU maritime trade is distributed across the Mediterranean, North Sea, Atlantic, Baltic, and Black Sea basins.

    EU Freight Volume by Sea Basin (Million Tonnes / yr)

    Eurostat dataset mar_mg_am_c. The Mediterranean and North Sea together process over 68% of all maritime cargo entering or leaving EU ports.

    Decarbonization Index

    EU ETS & FuelEU Maritime
    Emissions & Transition Targets

    Tracking the regulatory mandate driving global shipping toward zero-carbon fuels: 4,850+ vessels under EU ETS carbon allowance rules emitting ~125.4 Mt CO₂ annually.

    EU ETS Phase-in Schedule

      FuelEU Maritime GHG Targets

        Source: EU ETS Directive (2023/959) / FuelEU Maritime Regulation (2023/1805)

        Latest maritime news

        What's moving,
        right now

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        Headlines aggregated from gCaptain and Splash247, click through to read the full article at the source.

        Source: Eurostat, Maritime transport statistics (datasets mar_go_qm, mar_sg_am_cw, mar_mg_am_c). Retrieved 28 July 2026. Figures refresh as Eurostat publishes new data.