World Research Institute (WRI) · Logistics Growth Index (LGI) · Flagship · monthly
Logistics Index

Africa

August 2026 · vs July 2026 · forecast September 2026
Last corrected on 15 October 2026 · revised on 16 October 2026 · Corrections log
No change · edging down

Africa logistics activity is holding at the no-change line at 50.0

50.0455055
No change · fell 0.4 MoM
Breadth
5 / 10
in expansion · 4 of 8 weighted
Monthly change
-0.4
Coverage
8 mo
vs 8-mo range
49.2–51.9
short history
3-mo average
49.9
+0.1 vs avg
vs world
-1.8
Executive summary
  • Headline 50.0 (-0.4 MoM) — no change · edging down.
  • Breadth — 5 of 10 sub-indexes in expansion (8 weighted + 2 diagnostic); 4 rising, 6 easing this month; of the 8 weighted, 4 in expansion and 3 rising.
  • Transportation led the move (-1.6); Warehouse Capacity the main support (+1.3). The Inventory diagnostic recorded the largest single move (-4.0); it carries zero weight in the composite.

Trajectory & forecast

8-month history
ActualForecast
vs last month
-0.4
vs 3-mo avg
+0.1
vs a year ago
—
needs 12mo
8-mo range
49.2–51.9

At 50.0, Africa sits -0.6 below its 8-month average of 50.6. The September 2026 forecast points to 49.7 (-0.3 on the month).

Changes are computed from full-precision index values before rounding; readings shown at one decimal may not difference exactly. Trend classification uses the ±0.15 no-change band on unrounded values.

What changed — level vs momentum

At the 50 no-change line; more sub-indexes easing (6) than rising (4) — 5 of 10 in expansion; 4 of the 8 weighted.

Recovering1
below 50 · rising
Warehouse Capacity
Accelerating3
above 50 · rising
EmploymentLogistics Cost (diagnostic)Warehousing
Deteriorating4
below 50 · falling
Business SentimentTransport CapacityInventory (diagnostic)Goods for Sale
Slowing2
above 50 · falling
Business VolumeTransportation
Magnitude of move vs prior month
Employment+1.5
Logistics Cost (diag.)+1.4
Warehouse Capacity+1.3
Warehousing+0.3
Goods for Sale-0.4
Business Volume-0.5
Transport Capacity-1.0
Business Sentiment-1.5
Transportation-1.6
Inventory (diag.)-4.0
Expanding
5 / 10
Rising
4 / 10
Months above 50
5
of 8
Range width
2.7
8-mo spread

What's driving it — sub-index decomposition

Profile
Weighted contribution above 50 — what builds the 50.0
Warehousing+0.40
Business Volume+0.17
Transportation+0.05
Employment+0.01
Goods for Sale-0.02
Warehouse Capacity-0.09
Business Sentiment-0.12
Transport Capacity-0.39

Business Volume and Transportation carry the most weight in the composite. This month Transportation contributed the most to the move (-1.6); Warehouse Capacity was the main support (+1.3). The Inventory diagnostic recorded the largest single move (-4.0); it carries zero weight in the composite.

Full sub-index detail

weight · value · vs prior
Business Volume0.2250.8-0.5
Business Sentiment0.0848.5-1.5
Transportation0.1850.3-1.6
Transport Capacity0.1146.5-1.0
Employment0.0550.3+1.5
Logistics Costdiagnostic · zero weight0.0061.5+1.4
Warehousing0.1452.9+0.3
Warehouse Capacity0.0949.0+1.3
Inventorydiagnostic · zero weight0.0049.7-4.0
Goods for Sale0.1349.9-0.4

Macro context & peers

32 of 42 economies in expansion
World map · 42 tracked economies shaded by index
contractionexpansion· 50 = no changetrackednot tracked

Africa is benchmarked against 42 tracked economies. At 50.0 it sits below the global median of 51.7; 32 of 42 economies are in expansion this month.

Regional landscape · August 2026
Where this sits in the global distribution · 42 economies
45
50
55
Africa 50.0
Box = interquartile range · line = median (51.7) · whiskers = min–max · gold ticks = regions.
Logistics momentum relative to economic size

Dots are coloured by region; economies above the dashed 50 line are expanding. Small open economies often sit high-and-left — strong logistics reads relative to GDP — reflecting trade-entrepôt roles.

Peers league · tap a row for its report
Momentum across 42 economies · 24 rose · 17 fell this month
Top gainers
Philippines50.3+1.9
South Korea62.1+1.8
Poland53.0+1.7
China51.7+1.3
Top decliners
Russia45.1-3.8
South Africa48.4-2.3
Mexico50.5-1.7
Ireland52.2-1.7
Germany49.6-1.7
Full ranking — all 42 economies
#EconomyLGIMoM
1South Korea62.1+1.8
2Vietnam56.90.0
3Sweden55.5+0.5
4Nigeria54.8+0.4
5Taiwan54.6+0.2
6India54.5-1.1
7Denmark54.1+1.0
8Malaysia54.0+1.2
9Netherlands53.5+0.1
10Singapore53.5+0.4
11Turkey53.4+0.2
12Switzerland53.1+0.4
13Poland53.0+1.7
14United States52.8-1.1
15Japan52.7+0.3
16Thailand52.6+0.3
17Canada52.3-0.2
18Ireland52.2-1.7
19United Arab Emirates52.1+2.1
20Hong Kong52.1-0.1
21Indonesia51.8+0.5
22China51.7+1.3
23Argentina51.5-0.5
24Spain51.1-1.2
25Italy50.8+0.9
26Norway50.8-0.5
27Morocco50.8+0.6
28Austria50.6+1.0
29United Kingdom50.6-1.3
30Mexico50.5-1.7
31Philippines50.3+1.9
32Brazil50.2-1.6
33Algeria49.9+0.3
34Germany49.6-1.7
35Egypt49.2+0.4
36Australia49.1-1.6
37Israel48.7-1.3
38South Africa48.4-2.3
39Saudi Arabia48.3-1.3
40Belgium47.0+0.3
41France46.0+0.3
42Russia45.1-3.8

How to read this report · methodology

Diffusion scale. 50 = no change vs the prior month. Above 50 signals expansion, below signals contraction; distance from 50 measures signal strength (53 is a firmer expansion than 50.5), while the month-on-month change measures the pace, not the level.

Headline. A weighted average of 8 sub-indexes (weights at right); 2 more (Logistics Cost, Inventory) are tracked alongside as zero-weight diagnostics and do not enter the composite. Headline = 50 + the sum of weighted contributions, so the decomposition reconciles exactly.

Why track it. As a diffusion index it turns ahead of hard trade and output statistics, which lag one to two months; each edition publishes the latest completed month plus a forecast for the next, while official data is still weeks away.

Seasonality. Reported NSA (not seasonally adjusted). To strip calendar effects (Lunar New Year, mid-year lulls, Q4 peak shipping), watch the 3-month average rather than a single month-on-month move; year-on-year comparisons become available once 12 months of history accrue.

Coverage. 8 months of history for this series. The headline and percentile refer to the latest completed month; the forecast month is the forward projection published with the edition, always drawn dashed.

Aggregation. Regions and the World are GDP-weighted across 42 economies (US$107.01T, 2025 base) — larger economies carry proportionally more weight, so an aggregate reflects the economic scale of the activity it measures.

Sub-index weights
Business Volume0.22
Transportation0.18
Warehousing0.14
Goods for Sale0.13
Transport Capacity0.11
Warehouse Capacity0.09
Business Sentiment0.08
Employment0.05
Logistics Cost0.00diag
Inventory0.00diag
World Research Institute (WRI) computes and publishes the Logistics Growth Index (LGI). 50 = no change vs the prior month. Each edition reports the latest completed month with a forward projection for the next. August 2026 edition, published September 2026. MethodologyCite — Source: Africa Logistics Index, World Research Institute (WRI), worldresearch.org (August 2026).