November last year was the sixteenth consecutive month of growth in air cargo demand, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has reported.

“It was a good November for air cargo with 8.2% [year-on-year] demand growth nearly doubling the 4.6% growth in cargo capacity,” highlighted IATA director-general Willie Walsh.

“Fuel costs tracked at 22% below previous-year levels and tight market conditions supported yield growth at 7.8%. All things considered we are looking to close out 2024 air cargo performance on a profitable note. While this strong performance is very likely to extend into into 2025, there are some downside risks that must be carefully watched. These include inflation, geopolitical uncertainties and trade tensions.”

International air cargo demand was up 9.5% year-on-year in November. And international air cargo capacity increased by 6.5%.

Regarding key economic factors affecting air cargo demand, in October industrial production rose 2.1%, year-on-year. The global goods trade increased by 1.6% that month, making it the seventh consecutive month of growth in the sector. The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for global manufacturing output was above 50 points in November, signalling growth. On the other hand, the PMI for new export orders was below 50 points, indicating continuing weakness and uncertainty in global trade.

As for inflation rates in key global economies in November, that in the US inched up 0.1 percentage points to 2.7%. EU inflation rose by 0.2 percentage points to 2.5%. However, inflation in China fell to 0.2%, prolonging concerns that the Chinese economy was slowing down.

The IATA region that saw the strongest air cargo growth in November was the Asia-Pacific, with a rate of 13.2%. Latin America was second, at 11.2%. Then came North America (6.9%), Europe (5.6%) and the Middle East (3.6%). Africa actually recorded a contraction in demand, of -0.7%.

In terms of intercontinental trade lanes, the strongest year-on-year growth was seen in Asia-North America, at 13%; November was the thirteenth consecutive month of growth on this trade lane. In second place was Europe-Asia (12.9%); this route had 21 consecutive months of growth. Third was Middle East-Europe (9.9%), which had enjoyed 16 consecutive months of growth. Then came Middle East-Asia (9%), which had seen 18 months of consecutive growth. In fifth place was Africa-Asia (7.6%), a trade lane that had experienced 15 consecutive months of growth. Sixth place was filled by North America-Europe (5.6%), a route that had seen 13 months of consecutive growth.

Finally, it should be noted that trade lanes within Asia saw year-on-year growth of 12.2% in November. That month marked 13 months of consecutive growth on those routes.