Worldwide air cargo trade up 12%

London (Quantum Commodity Intelligence) - The air cargo market continues to boom worldwide, helping the stricken aviation market amid the ongoing crisis in passenger flights, data from the International Air Transport Association showed Tuesday.

Global air freight cargo, measured by how many tons were flown a kilometre, was up 12% in April compared to two years ago in April 2019, before the pandemic struck.

Seasonally adjusted demand was 5% higher than the pre-crisis August 2018 peak as air cargo freight continues to set new records, buoyed by the surge in global trade.

North American carriers led the pack, contributing 7.5 percentage points to the 12% growth rate in April.

Airlines in all other regions except for Latin America also supported the growth.  

There was also a switch away from using belly-cargo space in passenger planes.

International capacity from dedicated freighters rose 26.2% in April 2021 year-on-year, while belly-cargo capacity dropped by 38.5%, IATA noted.