{"id":4409,"date":"2026-07-23T15:26:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T12:26:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/scale-or-specialisation-dsv-and-kn-chart-different-paths-to-forwarding-success\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T15:26:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T12:26:18","slug":"scale-or-specialisation-dsv-and-kn-chart-different-paths-to-forwarding-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/scale-or-specialisation-dsv-and-kn-chart-different-paths-to-forwarding-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Scale or specialisation? DSV and K+N chart different paths to forwarding success"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"hero\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/theloadstar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/a89aeeb22da9d4a9914c897b15537bc8-680x0-c-default.jpg\" alt=\"kndsvpic\" \/><\/div>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<time datetime=\"2026-07-23\">23 July 2026<\/time><\/p>\n<p>The world\u2019s two largest freight forwarders\u00a0appear\u00a0to be\u00a0pursuing increasingly different paths to growth.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Acquisitive DSV has placed multi-billion-dollar bets on scale, and is now integrating DB Schenker into what it hopes will become an unrivalled global forwarding network. <\/p>\n<p>Kuehne+Nagel, meanwhile, favours targeted acquisitions that strengthen specific capabilities, with its results focused on operational efficiency, artificial intelligence, and higher-margin customers rather than sheer size.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The latest half-year results suggest both strategies have merit.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Air freight was strong for both, benefiting from demand for AI infrastructure and technology shipments, while ocean freight remained resilient, despite continuing market uncertainty. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>At DSV, the story is still one of integration. Air &amp; Sea revenue rose 32% in the first half, as Schenker contributed additional volumes, while management said integration was now beginning to translate into improved profitability. The group continues to target Dkr9bn of annual synergies from the acquisition by 2027. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>CEO Jens Lund told analysts the benefits were only beginning to emerge. He said:\u00a0\u201cAll in all, on the Air &amp; Sea side, I think we are on the right track and the division is going to deliver continued progress also in the coming quarters, because we are very advanced on integration.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>First-half revenue in air was up 36%, with gross profit rising 24% on volumes up 28%. In Sea, revenue went up 21.6%, while gross profit rose 4.9%, on a volume rise of 24%.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Mr Lund acknowledged ocean volumes had been weaker than expected, but said initiatives were under way to improve growth.<\/p>\n<p>Road Logistics continued to present operational challenges, he said, despite management changes and higher earnings following the Schenker acquisition.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>By contrast,\u00a0K+N\u2019s results focused less on scale than on extracting more value from existing\u00a0business.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The Swiss forwarder\u2019s Air Logistics division produced one of its strongest quarters in recent years, with EBIT climbing 35%, to Sfr154m on revenues up 20%, while for the first half, air revenue was up 4.2%, with EBIT up 15%. Management attributed the improvement to market share gains and a stronger customer mix, particularly in technology.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>CEO Stefan Paul said simply: \u201cAir Logistics delivered an excellent quarter, increasing profit by 35%.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>K+N highlighted specific growth opportunities, including the movement of cloud infrastructure equipment for Google between Asia and the US, illustrating how AI investment was becoming a significant driver of premium air cargo demand.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In ocean freight, DSV highlighted the benefits of procurement scale and Schenker synergies, while K+N focused on execution. Its Sea Logistics division lifted its conversion ratio to 29%, despite subdued European export demand, helped by tighter cost control and market share gains on the Asia-Europe and transpacific trades.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The difference extended well beyond air and sea: K+N repeatedly returned to themes of productivity, efficiency, and AI deployment, saying it was accelerating the roll-out of AI agents to optimise operational processes. <\/p>\n<p>Contract Logistics also benefited from new technology customers, with more than 300,000 sq metres of additional warehouse capacity dedicated to cloud infrastructure providers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>DSV\u2019s AI ambitions are no less significant, but are more aimed at making an ever-larger global network more productive. Technology was discussed as an enabler of integration, standardisation, and scale.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While DSV has been the poster boy for M&amp;A in the sector, K+N\u00a0has continued to\u00a0acquire\u00a0businesses, but\u00a0largely through\u00a0smaller, targeted deals.\u00a0<i>Loadstar Premium<\/i>\u2018s exclusive report that K+N\u00a0is considering a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/theloadstar.com\/exclusive-kuehne-nagels-deliberate-path-to-an-apex-listing\/\">future separation<\/a>\u00a0of Apex would only reinforce that focus on portfolio\u00a0optimisation\u00a0rather than transformational expansion.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The financial results suggest both strategies are delivering, albeit in\u00a0different ways. <\/p>\n<p>DSV generated first-half revenue of Dkr147.1bn ($22.7bn)\u00a0and\u00a0EBIT before special items of Dkr11.1bn ($1.7bn), equating to an operating margin of<b>\u00a0<\/b>7.5%.\u00a0K+N\u00a0reported\u00a0Sfr12.4bn ($15.4bn) in net turnover and\u00a0recurring EBIT of Sfr726m ($900m), representing a margin of\u00a05.9%.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>DSV\u2019s larger scale following the Schenker acquisition has enabled it to generate\u00a0almost twice\u00a0as much operating profit as its Swiss rival, while also producing a higher return on revenue. Whether that advantage proves sustainable,\u00a0or whether K+N\u2019s more targeted, efficiency-led approach\u00a0ultimately delivers\u00a0better\u00a0long-term returns\u00a0may become one of the defining strategic questions for the forwarding industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>23 July 2026 The world\u2019s two largest freight forwarders\u00a0appear\u00a0to be\u00a0pursuing increasingly different paths to growth.\u00a0 Acquisitive DSV has placed multi-billion-dollar bets on scale, and is now integrating DB Schenker into what it hopes will become an unrivalled global forwarding network. Kuehne+Nagel, meanwhile, favours targeted acquisitions that strengthen specific capabilities, with its results focused on operational 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July 2026 The world\u2019s two largest freight forwarders\u00a0appear\u00a0to be\u00a0pursuing increasingly different paths to growth.\u00a0 Acquisitive DSV has placed multi-billion-dollar bets on scale, and is now integrating DB Schenker into what it hopes will become an unrivalled global forwarding network. Kuehne+Nagel, meanwhile, favours targeted acquisitions that strengthen specific capabilities, with its results focused on operational&hellip;","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/phf4fX-197","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/280549882"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4409"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4409\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mikhailinvest.com\/ru\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}