Transport in Spain and Portugal grows 8.6%
According to the Observatory of the DBK sector of INFORMthe value of the iberian road freight transport market increased by 7.3% in 2021, to 18.6 billion euros, with 15.5 billion euros corresponding to spain and the remaining 3.1 billion euros euros for portugal
It is worth noting the improvement in the performance of turnover associated with international transport following the traction of motivations for cross-border mobility. Also noteworthy is the high weight of turnover derived from international transport services in Portugal, which represented more than 50% of the total in 2021, compared to 21% in Spain.
In the absence of official data for 2022, the global turnover is estimated at 20.2 billion euros, which represents an increase of 8.6% compared to 2021, in a context of growing demand and rising prices. However, the sharp rise in fuel prices and the increase in other operating costs affected operators’ margins in 2022.
The road transport sector is characterized by a high degree of fragmentation, with a large number of small companies. Furthermore, there is a high prevalence of independent transporters, who generally operate a single vehicle. In 2021, 113,859 companies were operating in the Iberian market, of which 105,902 were located in Spain and 7,957 in Portugal.
The five largest transport business groups represent 15% of the total turnover.
The fleet of public goods transport vehicles grew in 2021, reaching 287,172 units in the entire Iberian market, around 11,000 more than in the previous year. In both countries, the average size of transport fleets is small, with around 2.5 vehicles per company.
Excess transport capacity has led to a supply adjustment process over the last decade, with larger groups gaining market share. Business fragmentation is also reflected in the shares of the main operators, with the five main groups in the Iberian market representing just 15% of total turnover in 2021.