Air cargo growth rebounded for Middle East carriers in April but volumes continue to track broadly sideways, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Middle East airlines posted the second fastest year-on-year growth in freight volumes in April, up 7.3 percent.
This was a significant acceleration in demand over the 0.8 percent recorded the previous month, IATA said, adding that the increase mainly reflects developments from a year ago rather than a substantive change in the near-term trend.
Globally, IATA said demand, measured in freight tonne kilometres, rose 4.1 percent in April compared to the same period the year before. This was up from the 1.8 percent growth in annual demand recorded in March.
After a sharp fall in March to a 23-month low, global air freight volumes recovered slightly in April. The pace at which demand is growing, however, remains significantly slower than in much of 2017, IATA noted.
“April saw a strengthening from the abrupt slowdown in growth experienced in March. This is good news. We remain cautiously optimistic that demand will grow in the region of 4 percent this year,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s director general and CEO. More
By Sam Bridge arabianbusiness.com
