Asia Pacific airlines' cargo demand fell by 6.4% year-on-year in Aug: AAPA

September 25, 2019: Diminishing business confidence levels and significant declines in international trade volumes caused reductions in air cargo demand in August 2019 for Asia Pacific airlines.

According to preliminary figures for the month of August released by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), air cargo demand in freight tonne kilometres (FTK) fell by 6.4 percent year-on-year in August. Subdued demand conditions, with businesses remaining cautious on their inventories, contributed to the persistent weakness. Combined with a 1.1 percent increase in offered freight capacity, the average international freight load factor fell by 4.7 percentage points to 58.3 percent for the month.

Commenting on the results, Andrew Herdman, director general, AAPA said, "Air cargo demand declined by 5.9 percent during the first eight months of the year, with business confidence deteriorating further in August against a backdrop of heightened global trade tensions. Consumer goods markets continued to expand, but demand for intermediate goods fell further, contributing to the decline in air shipments."

In contrast on the passenger front, Asia Pacific airlines carried a combined 32.6 million international passengers in August, 2.3 percent more than the same month last year. In revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) terms, demand grew by 3.1 percent year-on-year. The average international passenger load factor eased 0.2 percentage points lower to 82.8 percent for the month, after accounting for a 3.4 percent expansion in available seat capacity.

Herdman said, "Whilst the long term outlook for air travel remains broadly positive, Asian airlines continue to face a challenging business environment."