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

Europe

August 2026 · vs July 2026 · forecast September 2026
Last corrected on 15 October 2026 · revised on 16 October 2026 · Corrections log
Contraction · deteriorating

Europe logistics activity is deteriorating in marginal contraction at 49.8 — deteriorating sharply.

49.8455055
Contraction · fell 0.8 MoM
Breadth
4 / 10
in expansion · 3 of 8 weighted
Monthly change
-0.8
Coverage
8 mo
vs 8-mo range
49.8–50.5
short history
3-mo average
50.1
-0.3 vs avg
vs world
-2.0
Executive summary
  • Headline 49.8 (-0.8 MoM) — contraction · deteriorating.
  • Breadth — 4 of 10 sub-indexes in expansion (8 weighted + 2 diagnostic); 2 rising, 8 easing this month; of the 8 weighted, 3 in expansion and 1 rising.
  • Business Volume led the move (-1.1); Warehousing the main support (+0.3).

Trajectory & forecast

8-month history
ActualForecast
vs last month
-0.8
vs 3-mo avg
-0.3
vs a year ago
—
needs 12mo
8-mo range
49.8–50.5

At 49.8, Europe sits -0.3 below its 8-month average of 50.1. The September 2026 forecast points to 49.3 (-0.5 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

Below the 50 no-change line; more sub-indexes easing (8) than rising (2) — 4 of 10 in expansion; 3 of the 8 weighted.

Recovering0
below 50 · rising
none
Accelerating2
above 50 · rising
Logistics Cost (diagnostic)Warehousing
Deteriorating6
below 50 · falling
TransportationTransport CapacityEmploymentWarehouse CapacityInventory (diagnostic)Goods for Sale
Slowing2
above 50 · falling
Business VolumeBusiness Sentiment
Magnitude of move vs prior month
Logistics Cost (diag.)+1.4
Warehousing+0.3
Inventory (diag.)-0.1
Employment-0.1
Warehouse Capacity-0.3
Transportation-0.6
Transport Capacity-0.8
Business Volume-1.1
Business Sentiment-1.3
Goods for Sale-1.7
Expanding
4 / 10
Rising
2 / 10
Months above 50
3
of 8
Range width
0.8
8-mo spread

What's driving it — sub-index decomposition

Profile
Weighted contribution above 50 — what builds the 49.8
Warehousing+0.43
Business Volume+0.21
Business Sentiment+0.06
Warehouse Capacity-0.01
Goods for Sale-0.06
Employment-0.07
Transport Capacity-0.38
Transportation-0.40

Business Volume and Transportation carry the most weight in the composite. This month Business Volume contributed the most to the move (-1.1); Warehousing was the main support (+0.3).

Full sub-index detail

weight · value · vs prior
Business Volume0.2250.9-1.1
Business Sentiment0.0850.8-1.3
Transportation0.1847.8-0.6
Transport Capacity0.1146.6-0.8
Employment0.0548.7-0.1
Logistics Costdiagnostic · zero weight0.0059.7+1.4
Warehousing0.1453.1+0.3
Warehouse Capacity0.0949.9-0.3
Inventorydiagnostic · zero weight0.0049.8-0.1
Goods for Sale0.1349.5-1.7

Macro context & peers

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

Europe is benchmarked against 42 tracked economies. At 49.8 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
Europe 49.8
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: Europe Logistics Index, World Research Institute (WRI), worldresearch.org (August 2026).