IATA: March air cargo volumes up 10%
30 / 04 / 2024
Photo: Jaromir Chalabala/ Shutterstock
Positive momentum for air cargo continued in March as it became the fourth consecutive month of double-digit year-on-year growth.
IATA reported that total demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTKs), rose by 10.3% compared to March 2023 levels, following rises in February, January and December.
The trade body noted that “for the first time, cumulative Q1 traffic surpassed the record heights experienced in Q1 2021”.
The industry-wide air cargo yield also increased by 5% compared to February, in line with rising load factors.
“Air cargo demand grew by 10.3% over the previous March. This contributed to a strong first quarter performance which slightly exceeded even the exceptionally strong 2021 first quarter performance during the Covid crisis,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s director general.
“With global cross-border trade and industrial production continuing to show a moderate upward trend, 2024 is shaping up to be a solid year for air cargo.”
IATA added: “The 10.3% YoY growth in industry CTKs was driven by traffic on international routes, which expanded by a total of 11.4% YoY in March, helped by the rapidly increasing demand for e-commerce services.”
Capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometers (ACTKs), increased by 7.3% compared to March 2023. As with the preceding months this year, international belly capacity has continued to return to the market.
“The annual growth in industry ACTKs for March was almost exclusively driven by bellyhold capacity, which recorded the 35th month of consecutive double-digit growth in March with 20.6% YoY,” noted IATA.
“In stark contrast, international cargo capacity on dedicated freighters rose by a modest 1.2% YoY. The MoM evolution was reversed, as dedicated freights stood at 17.7% compared to the previous month, while bellyhold capacity recorded an 8.9% increase.”
Air cargo’s robust performance in March is alongside an improved global economy. In March, the manufacturing output Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) climbed to 51.9, indicating expansion.
March also marked a return to deflation after February’s brief period of inflation, said IATA.
In the EU and Japan, inflation rates fell to 2.6% and 2.7% respectively and China experienced a slight deflation of -0.01%. However, inflation in the US rose to 3.5%.
This was supported by a 1.2% increase in global cross-border trade and a 1.6% increase in industrial production the previous month.
Air cargo market regional performance March 2024. Source: IATA
The Middle East had the strongest demand growth of all regions in March, while North America had the weakest demand growth.
Middle Eastern carriers saw 19.9% year-on-year demand growth for air cargo in March. “The Middle East–Europe market was the strongest performing with 38.3% growth, ahead of Middle East-Asia which grew by 19.6% year-on-year,” said IATA.
Asia Pacific airlines saw 14.3% growth. “Demand on the Asia-Europe route grew by 2.7 ppt to 17.0%”, according to IATA, which added demand “within (the) Asia market grew by 6.7 ppt to 11.8%”.
African airlines saw 14.2% growth. “Demand on Africa–Asia market increased to 22.9%, however this was a 19.8 ppt decrease compared to February’s performance and the largest contraction across the major route areas,” said the industry body.
European carriers saw 10% growth. IATA said: “Intra-European air cargo rose by 24.7% year-on-year. Europe–Middle East routes saw demand grow by 38.3% year-on-year, while Europe–North America expanded by 2.9% year-on-year.”
Latin American carriers saw 9.2% growth, but North American carriers saw just 0.9% growth.
“Demand on the North America–Europe trade lane grew by 2.9% year-on-year while Asia–North America grew by 4.7% year-on-year. March capacity decreased by -1.9% year-on-year,” commented IATA.
IATA reports an 11.9% jump in air cargo volumes for February
