IATA: Air Freight Market Analysis - September 2014

Key points from our full report on air freight markets in September:

Air freight volumes were up 5.2% in September year-on-year, accelerating on the August 3.8% rise;
Stronger economic performance in Asia Pacific and North America has boosted air freight growth over recent months;
Asia Pacific airlines’ FTKs rose 5.7%, supported by growth in regional trade activity and the release of the new Apple iPhone;
But there has been downward pressure from some regions, namely Europe were the Russia-Ukraine crisis is having negative economic impacts;
European carriers experienced a 1.6% fall in FTKs in September compared to a year ago;
Load factors improved slightly in September, both compared to the previous month and on a year ago;
The outlook for air freight volumes has started to look better again for some regions, but the extent of future gains could be limited;
Global trade is expanded at a faster pace than earlier in the year, but at a slower pace than global GDP;
Business confidence continues to indicate growth ahead, but improvements are limited by the presence of political and economic risks.