France rail freight tonnage: basic metals
France rail freight tonnage: basic metals stood at 10.43 million tonnes in 2025, according to SDES – Service des données et études statistiques (Ministère de la Transition écologique). It is one of the indicators in the Freight transport (annual) table (Value · Annual), with a complete series running from 2016 to 2025. The complete series with an interactive chart, free to download.
This indicator in the Freight transport (annual) table
| Indicator | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tonnes transported by type of goods (NST 2007) | |||||||||||
| Basic metals and metal products | 10.43 | 11.46 | 10.11 | 12.25 | 13.67 | 11.83 | 12.59 | 13.25 | 15.01 | 14.98 | |
| Transport equipment | 1.09 | 1.09 | 1.29 | 1.21 | 1.44 | 2.38 | 5.12 | 5.29 | 3.67 | 6.76 |
Understanding france rail freight tonnage: basic metals
Unworked and semi-finished iron, steel, non-ferrous metals, and fabricated metal articles hauled by rail are compiled in this metric, measured in million tonnes. The classification captures the output of rolling mills, foundries, and metal fabrication workshops destined for engineering, construction, and manufacturing sectors. This separates metallurgical goods from raw metal ores and non-metallic mineral products. The figure represents the physical mass of structural steel, metal bars, sheets, and manufactured metal components.
Evaluating these figures requires tracking industrial manufacturing health, automotive production schedules, and infrastructure steel demand. Annual analysis provides a stable view of metal industry logistics, bypassing month-to-month inventory adjustments at manufacturing plants. A primary pitfall is overlooking the global nature of metal supply chains, where domestic rail transport of metals often reflects international import and export flows rather than solely domestic industrial consumption.
Frequently asked questions
- Does this series cover raw metal ores straight from the mine?
- No, raw ores are categorized under mining products, whereas this series is restricted to processed basic metals and fabricated items.
- Are fabricated metal structures included alongside raw steel bars?
- Yes, basic metals and metal products cover both semi-finished mill outputs and finished structural metal components.
- Why do basic metal freight volumes fluctuate with heavy manufacturing cycles?
- Automotive, machinery, and construction industries are major consumers of basic metals, directly driving the transport demand for these materials.