DATA published by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (PA) shows that closure of businesses during the Lunar New Year worsened the prevailing weakness in air freight markets.
Air cargo markets recorded steep declines in February, as demand measured by freight tonne kilometres (FTK) decreased by 11.9 per cent compared to the same month last year.
Weakness in export activity came on the back of slower demand from major advanced and emerging market economies, including China. The fall in demand against the 1.2 per cent decline in offered freight capacity dragged down the average international freight load factor by 6.5 percentage points to 53.3 per cent in February.
Commenting on the results, PA director general Andrew Herdman said: 'Air cargo markets experienced challenging conditions. Declining confidence levels contributed to further falls in new export orders, adversely affecting demand for air shipments. Taken together, the first two months of the year saw an 8.3 per cent decline in air cargo demand for Asian carriers.'
He continued: 'The slowdown in the manufacturing sector with the ongoing softening in trade sentiment point to the likelihood of continued weakness in air cargo markets in the coming months. Nevertheless, ongoing growth in e-commerce shipments should provide some level of support to air cargo demand.
'Stimulatory fiscal policies implemented by selected economies are expected to encourage domestic spending. This should support reasonable growth in the global economy this year, sustaining continued growth in air travel markets.
'Overall, airlines remain proactive in responding to changes in demand conditions, and are exploring new avenues to boost revenue growth whilst managing costs in the face of challenging operating conditions.'
WORLD SHIPPING
Air cargo markets recorded steep declines in February, as demand measured by freight tonne kilometres (FTK) decreased by 11.9 per cent compared to the same month last year.
Weakness in export activity came on the back of slower demand from major advanced and emerging market economies, including China. The fall in demand against the 1.2 per cent decline in offered freight capacity dragged down the average international freight load factor by 6.5 percentage points to 53.3 per cent in February.
Commenting on the results, PA director general Andrew Herdman said: 'Air cargo markets experienced challenging conditions. Declining confidence levels contributed to further falls in new export orders, adversely affecting demand for air shipments. Taken together, the first two months of the year saw an 8.3 per cent decline in air cargo demand for Asian carriers.'
He continued: 'The slowdown in the manufacturing sector with the ongoing softening in trade sentiment point to the likelihood of continued weakness in air cargo markets in the coming months. Nevertheless, ongoing growth in e-commerce shipments should provide some level of support to air cargo demand.
'Stimulatory fiscal policies implemented by selected economies are expected to encourage domestic spending. This should support reasonable growth in the global economy this year, sustaining continued growth in air travel markets.
'Overall, airlines remain proactive in responding to changes in demand conditions, and are exploring new avenues to boost revenue growth whilst managing costs in the face of challenging operating conditions.'
WORLD SHIPPING