Deutsche Bahn reported a profit in its core business for the first half of 2026, marking the state-owned rail operator's first surplus in seven years. The result, in the hundreds of millions of euros, follows a €760 million loss in the same period last year and caps a difficult 2025 that ended with a net loss exceeding €1 billion.
Passenger numbers underpinned the turnaround. The railway carried roughly 960 million travellers in the first six months of 2026, about 17 million more than a year earlier. Around 600,000 customers used a new last-minute ticket option, 200,000 bought a family ticket, and the free Youth BahnCard 25 drew approximately 50,000 orders.
Operational challenges persist: long-distance punctuality stood at 52.6 percent in June, hampered by a late-month heatwave. Chief executive Evelyn Palla had signalled an emerging turnaround as early as March.