Archive:Water transport services statistics - NACE Rev. 2
- Data from April 2012. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.
This article presents an overview of statistics for water transport services in the European Union (EU), as covered by NACE Rev. 2 Division 50.
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(% share of sectoral total) - Source: Eurostat (sbs_na_1a_se_r2)
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Main statistical findings
Structural profile
There were just over 17 thousand enterprises operating with water transport services (Division 50) as their main activity in the EU-27 in 2009. Together they employed 220.9 thousand persons, which was equivalent to 0.2 % of the overall non-financial business economy (Sections B to J and L to N and Division 95) workforce, or 2.1 % of those employed in transportation and storage (Section H). Water transport services enterprises generated EUR 21 844 million of value added which was 0.4 % of the non-financial business economy total and 5.0% of the transportation and storage total.
The apparent labour productivity of the EU-27's water transport services sector in 2009 was relatively high at EUR 99 thousand per person employed. Indeed, this marked the tenth highest level of apparent labour productivity among all of the NACE divisions covered by the non-financial business economy and was more than double the non-financial business economy average of EUR 41.6 thousand per person employed or the transportation and storage average of EUR 41 thousand per person employed. Water transport services had the highest level of apparent labour productivity among any of the five NACE divisions that make-up transportation and storage services.
Average personnel costs within the EU-27’s water transport services sector were also relatively high at EUR 49.2 thousand per employee in 2009 compared with EUR 30.0 thousand per employee for the whole of the non-financial business economy and an average of EUR 31.2 thousand per employee across transportation and storage services, where the only NACE division to record higher average personnel costs was that of air transport.
The wage-adjusted labour productivity ratio, which combines the two previous indicators and shows the extent to which value added per person employed covers average personnel costs per employee, stood at 201.1 % for the EU-27’s water transport services sector in 2009. This was also considerably above both the non-financial business economy average of 138.8 % and the transportation and storage average of 132.1 % and marked the highest level for this ratio among any of the five NACE divisions within transportation and storage services.
The gross operating rate (which presents the relation between the gross operating surplus and turnover) is one measure of profitability; it stood at 12.6 % for the EU-27’s water transport services sector in 2009, which was almost the same as the average for the whole of transportation and storage (12.2 %), while being somewhat higher than the non-financial business economy average (9.7 %).
Sectoral analysis
The four different NACE groups that compose the water transport services sector each comprised between 3.0 and 5.5 thousand enterprises across the EU-27 in 2009. The highest number of enterprises was recorded for the inland freight water transport subsector (Group 50.4), which was equivalent to almost one third (32.5 %) of the water transport services total.
The pattern was quite different for the breakdown of employment as more than four out of five persons in the EU-27’s water transport services sector in 2009 worked in one or other of the two sea and coastal water transport services subsectors. The largest workforce (101.6 thousand persons) was registered for sea and coastal freight water transport (Group 50.2), while the sea and coastal passenger water transport subsector (Group 50.1) accounted for a further 78.1 thousand persons. The two inland water transport services subsectors had quite similar sized workforces, as 22.6 thousand persons were employed within the freight subsector, while the smallest workforce (18.5 thousand) was registered amongst those persons engaged in inland passenger water transport services (Group 50.3).
The relative importance of the EU-27’s sea and coastal freight water transport subsector was far higher in terms of value added, reaching EUR 17 759 million in 2008, which was approximately four fifths of the water transport services total (note that in Figure 1 and Table 2a there are mixed reference periods for value added across the four NACE groups). The high share of value added for sea and coastal freight water transport was reflected in its apparent labour productivity which stood at EUR 181 thousand per person employed in 2008; this was the ninth highest value across all of the NACE groups within the non-financial business economy.
EU-27 apparent labour productivity in 2009 was also relatively high for the inland freight water transport subsector (EUR 84 thousand per person employed) and for the sea and coastal passenger water transport subsector (EUR 71 thousand per person employed); these two subsectors also recorded wage-adjusted labour productivity ratios (234.5 % and 158.6 % respectively) that were above the non-financial business economy average (138.8 %). The gross operating rate for inland freight water transport (28.2 %) was almost three times as high as the non-financial business economy average (9.7 %) and was the thirteenth highest ratio among the NACE groups that compose the non-financial business economy. In contrast, the inland passenger water transport subsector recorded apparent labour productivity that was, at EUR 35 thousand per person employed in 2008, below the non-financial business economy average.
Country analysis
Germany had the largest water transport services sector in the EU-27 in terms of both its share of the workforce and its share of value added. Some 16.7 % of those employed in this sector within the EU-27 in 2009 were working in Germany, followed by 14.4 % in Italy and 11.5 % in the Netherlands (note that there is no information available for France); none of the remaining Member States accounted for more than the 7.9 % employment share recorded for Sweden.
In value added terms the relative importance of German activity was considerable higher, accounting for more than one third (36.5 %) of the EU-27’s added value in 2009; there were also double-digit shares for Denmark (2008), Italy, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Germany had the highest share of EU-27 value added in 2009 for three out of the four NACE groups within the water transport services sector, with the sea and coastal passenger water transport subsector the only exception – where Italy accounted for around one third of the EU-27’s added value.
In terms of relative specialisation, as measured by the national shares of water transport services in non-financial business economy value added, Denmark (2008) was the most specialised Member State. Water transport services accounted for 2.5 % of non-financial business economy added value in Denmark in 2008, which was almost 6.5 times as high as the average across the EU-27 in 2009. The highest degree of specialisation for sea and coastal passenger water transport services in 2009 was recorded in Cyprus, while for sea and coastal freight water transport services the most specialised Member State was Lithuania. For the inland water transport subsectors the highest degrees of specialisation were recorded in Portugal for passenger transport and in Romania for freight.
In keeping with the overall figures for the EU-27, most of the Member States reported relatively high levels of apparent labour productivity and average personnel costs within the water transport services sector in 2009. This was particularly true in Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom in 2009, as well as in Belgium and Denmark in 2008.
Data sources and availability
The analysis presented in this article is based on the main dataset for structural business statistics (SBS) which are disseminated annually. The series provides information for each Member State as well as a number of non-member countries at a detailed level according to the activity classification NACE. Data are available for a wide range of variables.
Context
This article presents an overview of statistics for the water transport services sector in the EU, as covered by NACE Rev. 2 Division 50. This division includes all water borne transport services whether these are scheduled or not; it excludes own account transport. Also included are the operation of towing or pushing boats (as well as barges and rigs), excursion, cruise or sightseeing boats, ferries, water taxis and so on, as well as the rental of pleasure boats with crew for water transport (for example, for fishing cruises).
A distinction is made between transport on inland waterways as opposed to sea and coastal water transport — the deciding factor is in fact the type of vessel used. A further distinction is made between the transport of passengers and freight, such that four separate NACE groups cover the whole of this services sector, which includes:
- sea and coastal passenger water transport (Group 50.1);
- sea and coastal freight water transport (Group 50.2);
- inland passenger water transport (Group 50.3);
- inland freight water transport (Group 50.4).
The renting of pleasure boats, yachts and commercial ships or boats without crew is excluded (part of Division 77, covering the renting and leasing of goods) as are harbour and port operations and other auxiliary activities such as docking, pilotage, lighterage, vessel salvage (part of Division 52, covering warehousing and support activities for transportation).
Further Eurostat information
Publications
Main tables
Database
- SBS – services (sbs_serv)
- Annual detailed enterprise statistics - services (sbs_na_serv)
- Annual detailed enterprise statistics for services (NACE Rev.2 H-N and S95) (sbs_na_1a_se_r2)
- Preliminary results on services, main indicators (NACE Rev.2) (sbs_sc_r2preli)
- SMEs - Annual enterprise statistics broken down by size classes - services (sbs_sc_sc)
- Services broken down by employment size classes (NACE Rev.2 H-N and S95) (sbs_sc_1b_se_r2)
- Annual detailed enterprise statistics - services (sbs_na_serv)
- SBS - regional data - all activities (sbs_r)
- SBS data by NUTS 2 regions and NACE Rev.2, from 2008 onwards (sbs_r_nuts06_r2)
Dedicated section
Source data for tables, figures and maps (MS Excel)
Other information
- Decision 1578/2007/EC of 11 December 2007 on the Community Statistical Programme 2008 to 2012
- Regulation 295/2008 of 11 March 2008 concerning structural business statistics