Dubai International’s cargo descends

DUBAI has not escaped the economic uncertainty and flagging consumer confidence in Europe and the US – October airfreight volumes shrank 2.5 per cent at the airport.

Dubai International handled 197,841 tonnes of freight in the month, compared with 202,984 tonnes recorded during the same period in 2010. Year-to-date freight volumes reached 1,808,239 tonnes, down 1.8 per cent compared to 1,841,422 tonnes handled during the corresponding period last year.

There were 28,463 aircraft movements for October, up 7.2 per cent from 26,558 recorded during the same month in 2010. On the other side the passenger business has shown promising growth. In October Dubai achieved a milestone by passing the 50 million-passenger mark over a 12-month period for the first time.

Dubai International is the seventh largest airport by cargo volume, according to Airport Council International figures for the first half of the year. During the period the airport registered almost 1.3 million tonnes, a loss of 0.1 per cent over the same time in 2010.