Legendary logistics executive Klaus-Michael Kühne dead at 89

Klaus-Michael Kühne, the former CEO of Kuehne+Nagel International AG, passed away on Sunday at the age of 89, the company announced. Born in Hamburg, Germany, Kühne entered the family-owned logistics company in 1958, 68 years after it was co-founded by his grandfather. At 29, Kühne became CEO of K+N Speditions-AG in 1966. The company's international expansion led Kühne to relocate to Switzerland in 1974, and he opened K+N's first office in China in 1979.

Kühne became chairman of the board in 1992 and led the company's public listing on the Swiss stock exchange in 1994. Since 2011, he has served as honorary chairman. Kühne established the Kuhne Logistics University in Hamburg and the Kühne Foundation, and holds significant stakes in Hapag-Lloyd and Lufthansa. Current CEO Stefan Paul praised Kühne's entrepreneurial vision, and industry leaders expressed deep respect for his legacy.

Kühne+Nagel remains one of the world's top five logistics companies by revenue. Kühne is survived by his wife Christine.