DHL Group · H1 and Q2 2026
DHL’s profit growth accelerates as heavier loads lift Express
DHL’s H1 2026 operating profit rose 19% to €3.34bn. Heavier international Express loads made better use of its network; limited available airfreight capacity added a further boost. Supply Chain also grew through new contracts and customer activity. The offsets were weaker ocean profit per container, falling German mail volumes and higher network costs. Further profit growth depends chiefly on keeping the heavier express traffic when air capacity loosens.
Exhibit 01
Express drove H1 profit growth; German post and parcels offset part of it
Change in EBIT · H1 2026 less H1 2025 · EUR m
Operating profit rose €536m to €3.34bn in H1 2026. Express added €606m; the rest of DHL together earned €70m less. Much of that offset is an accounting comparison: Supply Chain’s 2025 result included a €54m net one-off benefit, principally from taking control of ASMO. Excluding that prior benefit leaves other businesses and corporate items €16m lower.
DHL entered 2026 with profits already growing: Group H1 operating profit rose from €2.66bn in 2024 to €2.80bn in 2025 and €3.34bn in 2026. Express accounts for this year’s acceleration; German post and parcels are the clearest operating offset.
Group EBIT: €2,799m → €3,335m. Corporate row includes €2m change in published rounding residuals. Supply Chain adjustment removes only the disclosed €54m prior gain.
Exact chart values and sources
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Express | 606.00 |
| Global Forwarding | 6.00 |
| Supply Chain | -34.00 |
| eCommerce | -11.00 |
| Post & Parcel Germany | -48.00 |
| Corporate, consolidation & rounding | 17.00 |
Sources: segments, results, results-2025, basis-2025.
Exhibit 02
Heavier international consignments lift Express profit sharply
Time Definite International daily weight · year-on-year growth (%)
International weight per working day moved from 2.1% below the prior year in Q1 to 9.4% above it in Q2. Yet daily shipment numbers were still about 2% lower: DHL carried more weight, rather than more separate consignments. Management says fuller use of its air network, cost control and pricing lifted H1 operating margin from 11.6% to 15.2%.
The profit gain has more support than temporary air-capacity shortages alone. DHL puts their H1 benefit at about €150m, leaving €456m of the €606m increase after that subtraction. Retaining the heavier traffic matters more than relying on that temporary benefit recurring.
Weight per working day; shipment count is a different metric. Company explanations are attributed. The €150m removal is a partial sensitivity, not fully normalised EBIT or a measured allocation of the remaining gain.
Exact chart values and sources
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Q1 2026 | -2.13 |
| Q2 2026 | 9.36 |
Sources: segments, results, statbook, business-presentation.
Exhibit 03
Air’s stronger trading conditions mask an ocean squeeze
H1 2026 year-on-year growth · volume and gross profit per unit (%)
H1 air volume grew 5.5%, led by routes from Asia and Latin America; gross profit per tonne rose 13.5%. DHL links Q2 air gross-profit growth of 36.6% to higher rates, tight available capacity and more business. Ocean tells a different story: lower market rates from 2025 into early 2026 helped cut H1 revenue 4.9% and gross profit 10.0%, despite 4.7% more containers.
Higher freight rates do not automatically mean DHL keeps more per container. Ocean rates rose sharply in Q2 and revenue grew 8.0%, but gross profit still fell 1.8%. More billing had yet to repair the ocean trading margin; air drove the division’s Q2 profit improvement.
Gross profit is revenue after purchased transport, not operating profit. Changes in buying/selling rates, timing and cargo mix are not separately quantified. Per-unit figures blend lanes and customers; they are not transaction prices.
Exact chart values and sources
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Air · export tonnes | 5.45 |
| Air · gross profit per tonne | 13.55 |
| Ocean · TEU | 4.75 |
| Ocean · gross profit per TEU | -14.05 |
Sources: statbook, results, segments, business-presentation.
The implication
Watch the traffic behind the profit.
Express added €606m of operating profit while the rest of the Group together earned €70m less. That is why a Group growth rate alone cannot describe the operating picture. Heavier international traffic, shipment counts and the amount kept per forwarding unit are different signals.
Q2’s stronger weight is encouraging, but it should not be extrapolated automatically. Further evidence on weight and margins will show whether that improvement persists as air-capacity conditions change.
This is a selected extract from Freight Insider’s 19 October assessment. It is not a complete company valuation or an investment recommendation. Company explanations are attributed in the analysis; partial sensitivities are not fully normalised results.
Inspect the argument
Evidence behind the linked claims.
Values, definitions and exact retained input references for this extract.
Q2 air gross-profit growth · 36.6%
Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025. DHL division reporting; revenue includes sales to other DHL divisions.
Calculation: Reported observation: Air freight paragraph: Q2 gross profit +36.6%
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| results | Air freight paragraph: Q2 gross profit +36.6% | 36.6 |
Estimated air-capacity benefit · €150m
H1 2026; company approximate estimate. DHL Group and named divisions; source-native reporting perimeter
Calculation: €150
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| results | €150 | 150.0 |
Express increase less estimated capacity benefit · €456m
H1 2026 less H1 2025. DHL company reporting; arithmetic contribution, not causal attribution
Calculation: Express EBIT increase less the approximately €150m company-estimated capacity benefit
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1999.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1393.0 |
| results | €150 | 150.0 |
Express operating margin, H1 2025 · 11.6%
H1 2025. DHL company reporting; arithmetic contribution, not causal attribution
Calculation: EBIT / division total revenue × 100
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1393.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2025 / Total revenue | 11995.0 |
Express operating margin, H1 2026 · 15.2%
H1 2026. DHL company reporting; arithmetic contribution, not causal attribution
Calculation: EBIT / division total revenue × 100
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1999.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2026 / Total revenue | 13143.0 |
Q2 international daily shipment growth · -2.0%
Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025. Company rounded Time Definite International daily metric; weight and shipment count are distinct measures.
Calculation: Reported observation: Slide 10: TDI Shipments/Day at -2%
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| business-presentation | Slide 10: TDI Shipments/Day at -2% | -2 |
Group operating-profit increase · €536m
H1 2026 less H1 2025. DHL company reporting; arithmetic contribution, not causal attribution
Calculation: Current H1 minus prior H1
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| segments | Segments by division / Group / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 3335.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Group / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 2799.0 |
Q2 ocean gross-profit growth · -1.8%
Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025. DHL division reporting; revenue includes sales to other DHL divisions.
Calculation: Reported observation: Ocean freight paragraph: Q2 gross profit -1.8%
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| results | Ocean freight paragraph: Q2 gross profit -1.8% | -1.8 |
Q2 ocean revenue growth · 8.0%
Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025. DHL division reporting; revenue includes sales to other DHL divisions.
Calculation: Reported observation: Results table 4 / Ocean freight / column 6
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| results | Results table 4 / Ocean freight / column 6 | 8.0 |
Change outside Express · €-70m
H1 2026 less H1 2025. DHL company reporting; arithmetic contribution, not causal attribution
Calculation: Group EBIT change minus Express EBIT change
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| segments | Segments by division / Group / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 3335.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Group / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 2799.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1999.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1393.0 |
Change outside Express, removing the prior net gain · €-16m
H1 2026 less H1 2025. DHL company reporting; arithmetic contribution, not causal attribution
Calculation: Outside-Express EBIT change after removing the prior Supply Chain gain from the comparison base
| Source | Exact input | Value |
|---|---|---|
| segments | Segments by division / Group / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 3335.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Group / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 2799.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2026 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1999.0 |
| segments | Segments by division / Express / H1 2025 / Profit from operating activities (EBIT) | 1393.0 |
| results | €54 | 54.0 |
Primary disclosures
Sources and scope.
- DHL H1 2026 · results of operations
DHL Group · Published 2026-08-05. - DHL H1 2026 · segment accounts and reconciliation
DHL Group · Published 2026-08-05. - DHL Q2 2026 statistical workbook
DHL Group · Published 2026-08-05. - DHL H1 2025 · results
DHL Group · Published 2025-08-05. - DHL H1 2025 · basis
DHL Group · Published 2025-08-05. - DHL Q2 2026 results · business drivers, slides 3, 10–11 and 19–21
DHL Group · Published 2026-08-05.
The figures describe H1 and Q2 2026, not an observation of October trading. The source set and calculations are retained with the dated edition. Rounded display values do not replace the exact inputs above.
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