Air Freight Growth Recovers

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced that fright growth rate rose 4.1per cent in April 2018, compared to the same period the year before. IATA said this was up from the 1.8 per cent growth in annual demand recorded in March 2018, noting that it was the second time in 21 months that capacity growth outstripped demand growth. After a sharp fall in March 2018, to a 23-month low, global air freight volumes recovered slightly in April 2018. IATA noted that the pace at which demand is growing, however, remains significantly slower than in much of 2017. It attributed the weaker growth in air cargo to the end of the restocking cycle, during which businesses rapidly increase their inventory to meet unexpectedly high demand. The world body said this is consistent with demand drivers moving away from the highly supportive levels seen last year. The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for manufacturing and export orders fell in April 2018 to its lowest level since 2016. A softening of global trade is also evident with containerised freight demand slowing in tandem with air freight demand. Seasonally-adjusted freight volumes continue to track sideways.