Air Cargo outlook stabilises as growth accelerates in May

GENEVA - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has released data showing that growth in global air freight markets accelerated in May, up 4.7% on-year compared with 3.8% on-year growth in April. Cargo volumes were up across all regions, but with significant differences in performance.

Middle East carriers reported 9.3% on-year growth, where growth for North American carriers stood at 2.4%. IATA says the acceleration of growth reflects improved economic conditions, and that there are indications that world trade and business confidence is improving after weakness in the first quarter.
In particular, Chinese manufacturing activity rebounded in May, with a corresponding rise in export order growth. www.iata.org (ATI).