Latest News

Russian rail cargo volume dropped by a record 9.4% in may amid slowing economic

The Russian rail cargo volume fell 9.4% on an annual basis in May, to 94.6 millions metric tons. This is the largest monthly drop since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine.

The data published by Russian Railways on Monday showed that the trend of steady decline in 2025 would continue.

After two years of rapid growth, fueled by government spending and production for the Ukraine war, Russia's economy is now slowing down. Rail freight volumes are largely driven by industrial output. This rose 1.2% over the first four month of 2025 compared to a 5.1% increase in the same period of last year.

Oil, construction materials and grain were the cargo types that saw the sharpest drop in volume. The data revealed that the total volume for the first five month of this year dropped 7.3% in comparison to the same period last year.

According to a document seen, Russian Railways will cut its expenditures by 3.5% by 2025 as a result of reduced rail shipment forecasts. According to a document seen by, Russian Railways will cut its spending by 3.5% in 2025 due to reduced forecasts of rail shipment volumes.

The Ministry of Economy expects industrial production growth to slow down to 2.6% this coming year, from 4.6% by 2024. (Reporting and editing by Mark Trevelyan; Gleb Stolyarov)

(source: Reuters)