DB Cargo could cut half its workforce under operations reduction, Handelsblatt reports

Deutsche Bahn's freight subsidiary DB Cargo could cut its workforce by half under a cost-saving reduction of its operations currently under consideration, Handelsblatt reported on Monday, citing company and supervisory board sources.

Consultants have proposed scenarios that would shrink the loss-making segment of Germany's national rail company by between 60% and 80%, the German business newspaper's report said.

Of the roughly 8,000 jobs at the freight subsidiary, a partial exit from the business could result in the loss of around 4,000 jobs, according to calculations by consultants commissioned by Deutsche Bahn, Handelsblatt reported.

A decision on how to proceed will be made by the end of July, the report cited the sources as saying.

DB Cargo did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The company offers a service that collects individual freight wagons directly from customers and assembles them into trains for transport.