Dutch wholesale sector sees modest growth in 2025 despite challenges
Dutch wholesale businesses experienced a slight 0.9% turnover increase in 2025, with ICT and food sectors leading growth. However, persistent negative business confidence and staff shortages continue to weigh on the sector’s outlook for citizens and entrepreneurs alike.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Turnover change (2025 vs 2024) | +0.9% |
| Q4 2025 turnover change | +2.5% |
| Top-growing sub-sector | ICT equipment (+5.5%) |
| Declining sub-sectors | Agricultural products (-3.6%), other specialised wholesale (-4.2%) |
| Q4 2025 bankruptcies | 82 companies |
| Business confidence (Q1 2026) | -3.9 (negative for 16 quarters) |
| Staff shortage (Q1 2026) | 31.1% of entrepreneurs |
| Insufficient demand (Q1 2026) | 26.0% of entrepreneurs |
Statistics Netherlands (CBS) monitors economic trends, including wholesale sector performance, to inform government policy and business strategies. These figures help assess economic health and guide decisions on subsidies, regulations, and labor market interventions.
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Wholesale turnover almost one percent higher
The turnover of the wholesale and trade mediation sector was 0.9 percent higher in 2025 than a year earlier. In the fourth quarter, turnover was 2.5 percent higher than in the same quarter a year earlier. This means that turnover has been higher for the third consecutive quarter compared to the same period in 2024. This is reported by Statistics Netherlands (CBS) based on new figures on the wholesale sector.
Turnover increased in almost all sub-sectors of the wholesale and trade mediation sector in 2025 compared to 2024. Only in the wholesale of agricultural products (-3.6 percent) and other specialised wholesale (-4.2 percent) did turnover decline. Turnover in the wholesale of ICT equipment rose by 5.5 percent. Turnover in the wholesale of food products also increased by 3.6 percent. In the wholesale of non-food products, turnover rose by 3.0 percent over the past year, while the wholesale of industrial machinery recorded a turnover increase of 2.4 percent.
Turnover growth in fourth quarter in almost all sub-sectors
In the fourth quarter of 2025, almost all wholesale sub-sectors achieved higher turnover than in the same period a year earlier. Turnover in the wholesale of ICT equipment was 12.1 percent higher. The non-food (-6.1 percent) and food products (1.7 percent) sub-sectors also recorded higher turnover. Only the wholesale of agricultural products saw a 12.6 percent decline in turnover.
Fewer bankruptcies in the fourth quarter
In 2025, a total of 352 companies in the wholesale and trade mediation sector went bankrupt, 42 fewer than in 2024. In the fourth quarter, 82 companies in the sector went bankrupt.
Business confidence improves but remains negative
Business confidence in the wholesale and trade mediation sector stood at -3.9 at the start of the first quarter of 2026, which is slightly more positive than a quarter earlier. This marks the sixteenth consecutive quarter of negative sentiment in the sector.Business confidence for the business community as a whole is -3 points, but is higher than in the previous quarter.
Shortage of staff and demand weigh on sentiment
At the start of the first quarter of 2026, 31.1 percent of entrepreneurs in the wholesale and trade mediation sector reported a shortage of staff, up from 30.2 percent a quarter earlier. The share of entrepreneurs indicating insufficient demand for products fell to 26.0 percent. The share reporting a shortage of production resources also declined (to 8.4 percent). 26.6 percent of entrepreneurs reported no obstacles to business operations.