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ME carriers record strongest air travel demand growth

GENEVA, November 6, 2016

Middle East carriers recorded an 11.5 per cent rise in demand in September compared to a year ago, registering the strongest growth globally, said a report.

Following closely behind was Asia-Pacific (8.6 per cent), Africa (8 per cent), Latin America (7.1 per cent) and Europe (5.2 per cent), with North America lugging far behind (3.3 per cent), according to global passenger traffic results released by International Air Transport Association (Iata).

Capacity growth of Middle Eastern carriers rose much higher (13.8 per cent), and load factor dropped 1.5 percentage points to 73.9 per cent.

Globally, international passenger traffic climbed 6.9 per cent in 2015 compared to 2014. Total capacity rose 7.2 per cent, causing load factor to slide 0.2 percentage points to 80.4 per cent.

Global passenger traffic results for September showing demand (revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) rose 7 per cent for the full year compared to the same month in 2015. This was the strongest year-over-year increase in seven months. Capacity climbed 6.6 per cent and load factor edged up 0.3 percentage points to 81.1 per cent. Growth in domestic traffic slightly outpaced growth in international traffic.

“September’s growth in passenger demand was healthy. Importantly, this rebound from August weakness suggests that travel demand is showing its resilience in the aftermath of terror attacks. We must, of course, be ever-alert to the ongoing terror threat. And overall the industry is still vulnerable to being buffeted by rising geopolitical tensions, protectionist political agendas, and weak economic fundamentals. This will still be a good year for the airline industry’s performance, but our profitability will continue to be hard-won,” said Alexandre de Juniac, Iata’s director general and CEO. - TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Iata | Traffic | growth | carriers | Middle | East |

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