Freight Loading on the Russian Railways Network Down 1.5% in November 2025 and 5.6% in January–November
Freight loading on the Russian Railways (RZD) network totalled 94.2 million tonnes in November 2025, down 1.5% year on year, while the January–November figure reached 1 billion 21.3 million tonnes, 5.6% below the same period of 2024, according to the company's operational reporting. Cargo turnover over the eleven months stood at about 2,269.3 billion tariff tonne-kilometres, 1.4% lower year on year, and the November turnover reading also declined against the comparable month of the previous year.
November: 94.2 million tonnes, 1.5% below last year
MOSCOW, December 1, 2025 — The operational indicators published by Russian Railways show that freight loading on the network in November 2025 amounted to 94.2 million tonnes. Measured against November 2024, the month closed 1.5% lower. The monthly reading is the shortest window in the company's operational set, and it sets the closing point of the eleven-month sequence reported for 2025.
The November decline is narrower than the cumulative one: a 1.5% year-on-year contraction for the month sits well inside the 5.6% contraction recorded for January–November as a whole. In other words, the monthly pace of the decrease in the final reported month was milder than the average pace accumulated over the eleven months, although it remained negative.
Eleven months: 1 billion 21.3 million tonnes
For January–November 2025, loading on the Russian Railways network totalled 1 billion 21.3 million tonnes, 5.6% less than in the same eleven months of 2024. The cumulative figure combines the monthly readings of the year to date, including the 94.2 million tonnes loaded in November, and it is the principal yardstick of freight volumes moved on the network in the reporting period.
The key operational figures for the period are as follows:
- loading in November 2025 — 94.2 million tonnes, down 1.5% year on year;
- loading in January–November 2025 — 1 billion 21.3 million tonnes, down 5.6% year on year;
- cargo turnover in January–November 2025 — about 2,269.3 billion tariff tonne-kilometres, down 1.4% year on year;
- cargo turnover in November 2025 — also lower than in November 2024.
Cargo turnover: a smaller decline than volumes
Cargo turnover, the measure that combines the weight of freight with the distance it is carried, reached about 2,269.3 billion tariff tonne-kilometres in January–November 2025, a year-on-year decrease of 1.4%. The turnover decline is therefore shallower than the 5.6% decline in loaded tonnes over the same period, which indicates that the average haul of the freight that was loaded did not shorten in step with the volumes themselves. The November turnover reading moved in the same direction and also fell year on year, consistent with the monthly decline in loading.
Operational data and where it comes from
The figures above are the operational indicators of Russian Railways, the rail network operator of Russia. They are reported on a monthly basis and cover loading, the tonnage of freight accepted for carriage on the network, and cargo turnover, expressed in tariff tonne-kilometres. As operational statistics, they give an early quantitative picture of rail freight activity before more detailed reporting becomes available.
The November and January–November readings were published on December 1, 2025 and reported by Interfax at https://www.interfax.ru/business/1060786. The set — monthly loading, cumulative loading and turnover in both windows — is the complete operational picture released for the period, and it shows a rail freight market still contracting in volume terms at the end of 2025.
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