Mike King, Special Correspondent | Apr 26, 2012 10:43AM EDT
International air cargo traffic carried by Asian airlines fell 4.5 percent year-over-year in March as key consumer markets remained weak.
The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines said the result was “a reflection of lackluster export-import markets.”
Offered freight capacity by Asian airlines contracted by 4.1 percent in March compared to a year earlier, resulting in a 0.2 percentage point fall to 69.3 percent in the average international air cargo load factor of carriers.
AAPA Director General Andrew Herdman said international air cargo traffic for the first quarter had contracted 4.1 percent compared to a year ago, “reflecting a soft market and lingering concerns over weakening consumer demand, particularly in Europe.”
“The global macro-economic outlook is still overshadowed by the potentially dampening effects of stubbornly high oil prices, and poor growth prospects in Europe, but Asian economies are still delivering robust growth,” he added.
“Nevertheless, airline margins remain under pressure from high fuel costs, focusing attention on further efforts to tightly control costs and carefully match capacity to market demand.”
Contact Mike King at michael@borderline.eu.com.
