STRONG DECEMBER PERFORMANCE CONTRIBUTES TO YEAR-ON-YEAR DEMAND GROWTH BY 18.7%
On 25 January, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for global air freight markets showing that full-year demand for air cargo increased by 6.9% in 2021, compared to 2019 (pre-COVID levels) and 18.7% compared to 2020 following a strong performance in December 2021. This was the second biggest improvement in year-on-year demand since IATA started to monitor cargo performance in 1990 (behind 2010’s 20.6% gain), outpacing the 9.8% rise in global goods trade by 8.9 percentage points.
Capacity in 2021, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTKs), was 10.9% below 2019, with capacity remaining constrained with bottlenecks at key hubs. The lack of available capacity contributed to increased yields and revenues for airlines, with rates in December 2021 being almost 150% above 2019 levels.
IATA notes that economic conditions continue to support air cargo growth, due to a rise in global goods trade by 7.7% in November compared to pre-crisis levels and a low inventory-to-sales ratio. The cost-competitiveness of air cargo relative to that of sea-container shipping remained favourable. Moreover, the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in many advanced economies has created strong demand for PPE shipments, which are usually carried by air. However, some supply chain issues, such as labour shortage and shortage of storage space at airports, continued.
Source: IATA