In August, the global airfreight indicators, as measured in cargo tonne kilometer (CTK), increased by 1.5% year-on-year. For international flights, it amounted to 2%. This is the first annual increase in 19 months, Willie Walsh, IATA Director General, noted.
At the same time, there was a 12% increase in the available capacity (8% in international business). This significant improvement in cargo space is due to the development of the passenger aviation market. Passenger flights have historically made up the majority of cargo space, and their suspension during the pandemic significantly reduced the available capacity. Cargo capacity in the passenger fleet in August increased by 30% year-on-year.
Although the global freight transportation increased by 1.5%, the variations between regions were significant. The main drivers were Asia Pacific (a 4.9% increase) and South America (a 6.2% increase).
However, the West is not experiencing recovery so far. In North America, the freight transportation volumes in August were 1.2% lower than in August of the previous year. A slight decrease of 0.2% was observed in Europe.
Among the significant routes, the route from Asia to Europe recorded an increase in demand to 8.8% year-on-year. There was a 2.9% decrease on the route from North America to Europe.
Source: trans.info