Global air cargo demand surges in February

With our strong presence in the expedited international airfreight sector, the U-Freight Group notes that global air demand continued its strong momentum into February rising 11.2% according to the latest data released by IATA.

The data, released this week, shows total demand increased by 11.2% compared to February 2025, with international operations growing by 11.6%.

Capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTK), rose by 8.5% year-on-year, and by 9.8% for international services.

IATA Director General Willie Walsh said even considering the boost that February received from the movement of goods ahead of Chinese Lunar New Year, the month showed strong growth.

“The outbreak of war in the Middle East at the end of the month, however, makes it difficult to see how full-year performance will unfold. Sharply rising fuel costs, fuel scarcity in parts of the world, and the severe disruption to key cargo hubs in the Gulf are major shifts,” Walsh said.

“While air cargo has repeatedly proven its resilience in the face of disruption, an early resolution of the war along with a normalisation of fuel supply and costs would be in everybody’s interest,” he said.

Regional performances varied significantly.  African airlines recorded the strongest growth in demand (21%), with capacity up 17.3%. Asia-Pacific carriers saw demand rise 13.6%, supported by 10.1% capacity growth. 

Middle Eastern carriers posted 16.5% demand growth and 13.5% capacity increase, while North American carriers reported 9.4% demand growth against 5.3% capacity growth. European carriers managed 6.9% demand and 6.1% capacity increases. Latin American and Caribbean carriers showed the weakest result, with demand up just 0.7% and capacity rising 4.5%.

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