Airfreight volumes fell by 1.2 per cent year-on-year in November but are above the low point of August 2015, suggesting the declining demand may be bottoming out, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The association says that the Middle East was the only region to see an increase in November, up 5.4 per cent though falling oil prices are impacting some economies. Latin America saw the largest decline, down 6.4 per cent year-on-year, and falling 1.4 per cent from October due to political and economic problems particularly in Brazil.
IATA director general and chief executive officer, Tony Tyler says: “The freight performance in November was a mixed bag. Although the headline growth rate fell again, and the global economic outlook remains fragile, it appears that parts of Asia-Pacific are growing again and globally, export orders are looking better.”
“In fact, the downward trend in FTK [freight tonne kilometres] volumes appears to be bottoming out. But there is a great deal of uncertainty. The current volatility of stock markets shows how much the health of the global economy – upon which air cargo depends – remains on a knife-edge.”
