Water levels on the Rhine and Danube remain at recent low levels and ships must sail partly-loaded on the German sections of both rivers, traders said on Monday. Rain in river catchment areas in western Germany and Switzerland was only moderate in recent days and had not brought a significant improvement, traders said.
Low water has hampered shipping on both rivers for the last two months. Mostly dry weather was forecast in coming days. The Rhine is an important shipping route for commodities including grains, metal ores, coal and oil products including heating oil. It is a major route for Switzerland's commodity imports.