International freight demand down
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said last week that demand growth for international freight in October was 2.3 per cent year on year, a sharp drop from the 4.9 per cent recorded in September.
This is the weakest monthly growth rate in a year. By contrast, international passenger demand growth was 5.3 per cent, up from 4.7 per cent in September. For the first 10 months, freight traffic increased by 4.9 per cent and passenger traffic by 5.8 per cent. "Freight is the story of the month. Despite strong underlying positive economic conditions, the results for freight traffic are disappointing," said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director-general and CEO. "Some positive news is expected. As the recent fall in the price of oil works its way through the system, we can expect to see a boost in freight traffic, particularly as we enter the fourth quarter, which is traditionally the peak season." Despite European Union exports rising by 11 per cent in the first nine months, European carriers saw only a 1.8-per-cent increase in air freight, with a year-on-year contraction of 0.4 per cent in October. Asia-Pacific carriers experienced a 4.9-per-cent increase in freight. The average passenger load factor for October was 74.9 per cent, representing the 18th consecutive month of year-on-year increases.
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