The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for global air freight markets showing that demand, measured in freight tonne kilometers (FTKs), decreased by 4.8% in June 2019, compared to the same period in 2018. This marks the eighth consecutive month of year-on-year decline in freight volumes.
However, while airlines in Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin American and the Middle East once again suffered the sharpest declines in year-on-year growth in total air freight volumes in June 2019, African carriers record tangible growth, states IATA.
Significantly, IATA states that African carriers were the only ones to report growth in June 2019, with an increase in demand of 3.8% compared to the same period a year earlier. It adds that this makes Africa the strongest performer for the fourth consecutive month. Capacity grew 16.6%. Route analysis shows that the Africa-Asia performance is strong—up 12% year-on-year.
Also, IATA reports that African airlines’ traffic soared 11.7% in June, up from 5.1% in May. Capacity rose 7.7%, and load factor jumped 2.6 percentage points to 70.5%. Demand is benefitting from a generally supportive economic backdrop, including improved economic stability in several countries, as well as increased air connectivity.