Global air cargo experiences 18 months of continuous growth

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"January marked 18 consecutive months of growth for air cargo, but the month’s 3.2% year-on-year growth is a moderation from double-digit peaks in 2024. Similarly, yields, while still above January 2024 levels, saw a 9.9% decline from December as cargo load factors also declined by an average of 1.5 percentage points.

"While external factors such as trade growth, declining fuel costs and expanding e-commerce remain positive for air cargo, it is important to closely watch the evolution of market conditions at this time.

"In particular, the wild card is the potential for tariff-driven trade policies from the US Trump Administration. Fortunately, the air cargo industry is well practiced at dealing with shifts in the operating environment," said Willie Walsh, Iata’s director general.

Several factors in the operating environment should be noted:

• Year-on-year, industrial production rose 2.6% in December. Global goods trade grew for a ninth consecutive month, reporting a 3.3% increase in December.
• The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for global manufacturing output was above the 50-mark for January, indicating growth. At 50.62, this was the highest reading since July 2024. The PMI for new export orders rose to 49.37, remaining just shy of the 50-mark, which is the growth threshold.
• In January, consumer inflation in the US and Europe both rose by 0.1 percentage points to 3.0% and 2.8%, respectively. Chinese consumer inflation rebounded to 0.5% in January, after progressively falling to 0.1% in the previous four months.

Air cargo market

January regional performance

Asia-Pacific airlines saw 7.5% year-on-year demand growth for air cargo in January. Capacity increased by 10.9% year-on-year.

North American carriers saw 5.3% year-on-year demand growth for air cargo in January. Capacity increased by 7.5% year-on-year.

European carriers saw 1.3% year-on-year demand growth for air cargo in January. Capacity increased 3.5% year-on-year.

Middle Eastern carriers saw an 8.4% year-on-year demand decrease for air cargo in January, the slowest among the regions. Capacity decreased by 1.2% year-on-year.

Latin American carriers saw an 11.2% year-on-year increase in demand growth for air cargo in January, the strongest growth among the regions. Capacity increased 10.6% year-on-year.

African airlines saw a 3.4% year-on-year decrease in demand for air cargo in January. Capacity increased by 5.4% year-on-year.

Trade Lane Growth: Most international routes experienced growth in January. Airlines are benefiting from rising e-commerce demand in the US and Europe amid ongoing capacity limits in ocean shipping.