KUALA LUMPUR, May 29 — The global air cargo market recorded 21.7 billion cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs) in April, representing an 11.1 per cent year-on-year expansion, marking the fifth consecutive month of double-digit annual growth, said the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
It said the global international traffic also rose by 11.6 per cent in the month compared to April 2023, supported by all regions and major trade lanes.
The largest contributors to this strong traffic performance were carriers from Asia Pacific and Europe, contributing two-thirds to the annual increase.
“This contrasts with the preceding seven months, where the bulk of the annual rise had stemmed from airlines registered in Asia Pacific and the Middle East, even though the latter is one of the smaller regions by traffic volume (ranked fourth out of six regions),” IATA said in a statement today.
The solid upward trend in industry CTKs was driven by traffic on international routes, likely supported by booming e-commerce and capacity constraints in global maritime shipping.
IATA director-general Willie Walsh said that while many economic uncertainties remained, the roots of air cargo’s strong performance appeared to be deepening.
“In recent months, air cargo demand grew even when the purchasing managers index (PMI) was indicating the potential for contraction.
“With the PMI now indicating growth, the prospects for continued strong demand are even more robust,” he said.
— Bernama
