Frankfurt traffic grows but decline expected

CARGO traffic at Frankfurt airport, Europe’s biggest airfreight hub, grew by 1.2 percent in the first nine months of the year from the same period in 2007, but is expected to decline in the final three months as the global economic downturn impacts trade flows.

Frankfurt handled 1.56 million tonnes of freight between January and September, Fraport, the airport’s owner said. Cargo traffic at Fraport’s six airports in Germany, Bulgaria and Turkey combined grew 2.9 per cent to 1.9 million tons.

But Fraport warned both cargo and passenger traffic are unlikely to grow in the coming months.

“In the wake of the global financial crisis and the ensuing economic cooling, there are the first signs of traffic stagnation or decline” and Fraport “will not be able to escape this change,” the company said.