AIR CARGO DEMAND GROWS IN AUGUST
On 3 October, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) released its global air cargo data for August 2023, highlighting that year-on-year demand grew for the first time in 19 months.
In August, the global demand for air cargo, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs), grew by 1.5% when compared to the levels of August 2022 (with international operations showing a 2% increase). At the same time, the capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTKs), surged by 12.2% compared to August 2022 (11.8% for international operations). This surge was mainly attributed to the substantial increase in belly capacity, which rose by 30% year-on-year as airlines expanded their operations to meet the heightened demand during the peak-northern summer travel season. In Europe, the volume of air cargo experienced a slight decline of 0.2% in August compared to the same month in 2022. Nevertheless, this performance showed improvement compared to July, which witnessed a decline of 1.0%.
Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General, noted that this growth in air cargo demand of 1.5% is welcomed, but he highlighted that this increase is starting from a lower point in 2022. He also added that market signals remain mixed, but the positive trends in the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data provide a reason for optimism.
Source: IATA