IATA: Cargo demand grows 5.8% in April

With our strong presence in the expedited international airfreight business, the U-Freight Group notes that air cargo demand grew by 5.8% in April, according to IATA, which warned that stresses faced by world trade are no secret.

The growth measured in cargo tonne kilometres (CTK) built on March’s strong performance with total demand up 5.8% and international demand increasing by 6.5%.

Capacity measured in available CTK increased by 6.3% in total and 6.9% for international operations.

The market was affected by world industrial production rising by 3.2% in March, with air cargo growth outpacing the global goods trade with an increase of 6.5% over the previous month.

Jet fuel prices fell by 21.2% year-on-year and 4.1% month-on-month, the third consecutive monthly decrease.

The global manufacturing PMI rose to 50.5 in April, signalling the fourth consecutive month of growth.

The PMI for new export orders fell 2.8 points to 47.2, below the 50 mark which indicates growth.

Willie Walsh, Director General of IATA says that seasonal demand for fashion and consumer goods, frontloading ahead of US tariffs and lower jet fuel prices gave air cargo a boost.

He said: “While April brought good news, stresses in world trade are no secret. Shifts in trade policy, particularly in the US, are already reshaping demand and export dynamics. Airlines will need to remain flexible as the situation develops over the coming months.”

For more information about the U-Freight Group’s global air freight forwarding and logistics services, or our e-commerce logistics operations, please visit the relevant pages of this website or contact your local office, details of which can be seen here: https://ufreight.com/locations