IATA: World air freight up 5.4% after six months

IATA: World air freight up 5.4% after six months    The Geneva-based International Air Transport Association today reported that international air freight traffic was up 5.2 percent for the first half 2006.
   Middle Eastern carriers lead the growth in the six-month period with a 19.3 percent year-on-year increase in freight-ton kilometers, followed by North America (6.4 percent), Africa (5.6 percent), Asia Pacific (4.8 percent), Latin America (4 percent), and Europe (2.2 percent).
   Giovanni Bisignani, IATA’s director general and chief executive officer, said that rising oil prices have left airlines in the red despite average 10 percent revenue increases over the last three years.
   'The bottom line is all about oil. Prices continue at near record levels and we expect a fuel bill of $112 billion this year at an average price of $66 per barrel. Increased political instability in the Middle East does not bode well for a price drop any time soon. The good news is that neither the extraordinary price of oil nor the inching-up of interest rates negatively impacted demand,' said Bisignani.