Air cargo figures slowly on the rise
27 / 01 / 2014
AIR CARGO’S gradual improvement is continuing, as a trend that started in the third quarter of this year, now shows that airfreight markets are responding to better economic confidence and improved consumer demand.
The latest IATA report demonstrates that global air cargo markets are continuing a gradual recovery, with the industry posting four per cent year-on-year growth in traffic in October, as most regions registered an expansion, thanks to an improving business environment.
The improvement in airfreight growth in October saw global freight-tonne-kilometers increase by four per cent, with growth in all regions, except Africa.
Middle East carriers reported the most impressive growth in the month, whilst European and North American airlines reported growth below the long-term cargo improvement trend of five to six per cent.
After a long slump, Asia-Pacific carriers grew marginally, as the pick-up in Chinese growth and trade volumes across the region indicated that Asia-Pacific, the world’s largest airfreight region by market share, is potentially poised for a continuous upturn.
“Since mid-year, we’ve seen modest but sustained growth in cargo, fed by stronger business confidence and improving trade flows,” notes Tony Tyler, IATA’s director.
“Air cargo is still a very tough business, though. Matching capacity to demand has been difficult in an environment where passenger traffic is growing more robustly. There is some evidence that the fall in load factors has stabilised, but yields remain under pressure,” he adds.
