(MENAFN- Gulf Times) Bucking global trend, Middle Eastern carriers have seen their air cargo business grow by 18.1% in May, on the back of increased trade within the region, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said yesterday.
The air cargo business growth for Middle Eastern carriers was also driven by "shippers taking advantage of the GCC carriers' hub strategy."
A report released by IATA showed that carriers' air cargo capacity expanding by 19.4% in May.
Globally, the air freight markets continued to slow in May.
The main reason for the flattening in the global trend is the adverse developments in Asia Pacific. Carriers in Asia Pacific recorded a 2.8% rise in freight-tonne-kilometres (FTKs) in May year-on-year, IATA said.
The region has experienced notable slowdown in imports and exports over recent months. In April, however, there was some recovery in emerging Asia exports, which if sustained, could ease downward the pressure on air cargo demand going forward. Compared to May 2014, FTK growth was 2.1%, the slowest rate this year and outpaced by a capacity expansion of 4.3%, the report said.
On a year-to-date basis, freight volumes are up 4% on the previous year, but much of that growth was realised in the latter part of 2014.
Carriers in most regions, with the exception of those based in the Middle East, saw weak growth or even contractions.
In aggregate, airlines in North and Latin America and Europe reported that their freight business was smaller in May 2015 than in the same month of 2014.
Carriers in Asia-Pacific experienced slow growth as a result of poor import/export performance.
IATA said world trade was still only growing in line with domestic production, but air freight's share of world trade had been increasing since mid-2014.
"At the moment we are sticking with our view that economic growth and trade will accelerate in the second half of the year, strengthening growth in air cargo volumes. Current demand conditions, however, are gloomy. May data show no increase in business confidence compared to the start of the year, and growth in export orders have been in gradual decline, and are now contracting," IATA said.
"Cargo growth has undoubtedly come off the boil. The expansion in volumes we saw in 2014 has ground to a halt, and load factors are falling. Some economic fundamentals still point to a rebound in the second half of the year, but we have to recognise that business confidence is flat and export orders in decline. There is also the risk of a shock to the economic system of a 'Grexit' from the eurozone," said Tony Tyler, IATA's Director General and CEO.
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