Global airfreight demand growth led by Asia Pacific

IATA’s traffic results for November 2009 show global airfreight demand was up 9.5 per cent over November 2008. However this was an exaggerated improvement due to the sharp fall in demand experienced during the second half of 2008.Demand is 20 per cent better than the low point in December 2008, but still 10 per cent below the peak levels seen in early 2008. Comparing to October (and adjusting for seasonality), freight demand grew by 4.7 per cent, largely on the strength of markets connected to Asia Pacific.The bulk of the airfreight markets connect Asia. The 14.5 per cent growth in freight demand for Asia Pacific’s carriers is linked to the success of stimulus packages in driving industrial output and broader economic recovery within the region.Carriers in other regions also saw strong growth in freight as follows: Africa (8.1 per cent), Latin America (17.5 per cent), Middle East (21.4 per cent) and North America (13.6 per cent).European carriers were the only group to post a drop in traffic, recording a 5.6 per cent fall in demand. This reflects the lingering economic malaise in the region.“Demand continues to improve, but we still have a lot of ground still to recover. We cannot anticipate any significant improvement in yields in the coming months. So, conserving cash, controlling costs and carefully matching capacity to demand remain at the keys to survival,” said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA’s director general and chief executive officer.