Cathay’s air cargo volume rises in September

   Cathay Pacific and sister airline Dragonair saw air cargo volume rise 2.4 percent year-on-year in September.
   The two airlines carried 134,584 tons of freight during the month. The airlines’ joint load factor was down 2 percent to 62.8 percent, while capacity decreased by 0.3 percent. Year to date, tonnage has declined by 8.3 percent against a capacity drop of 4.9 percent.
   “Demand out of key markets began to pick up from mid-September onwards, helped by shipments of high-tech consumer products out of Mainland China and other manufacturing centers such as Vietnam,” said Cathay Pacific General Manager Cargo Sales and Marketing James Woodrow. “There was also a short pre-holiday rush in the build-up to the National Day ‘golden week’ in the Mainland.
   “We will operate more scheduled services to Europe and the Americas from mid-October onwards but will still fall short of the number of freighters operated in the same period in 2010,” Woodrow added. “The market from Asia to Europe in particular remains weak and ultra price-competitive as supply continues to exceed demand despite the capacity cuts.”