IATA: Airfreight volumes decline 1.2 percent in November

Although airfreight volumes dropped 1.2 percent year-over-year in November 2015, they rose 0.9 percent from October 2015.    Global airfreight volumes fell 1.2 percent year-over-year in November 2015, but volumes were up 0.9 percent from October 2015 and higher than the low point in August, which indicates the decline in cargo demand may be bottoming out, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
   Only Middle Eastern airfreight carriers experienced year-over-year volumes increases in November. However, the comparative weaknesses in European, North American and Asia-Pacific airfreight carriers, which combined make up over 80 percent of total trade, was largely driven by strong performance in November 2014.
   Asia-Pacific airfreight carriers decreased volumes by 1.5 percent year-over-year in November. On a bright note, recent demand in advanced economies has started to support a steady recovery in export growth in some Asian nations, particularly Japan. Compared to October, Asia-Pacific airfreight carriers experienced growth of 1.9 percent.
   Volumes carried by European airfreight carriers fell 2 percent year-over-year in November.
   “Comparing November to October, the trend was flat, but there are indications that stronger manufacturing and export orders could support air freight demand in the coming months,” IATA said.
   North American airfreight carriers saw November volumes drop 3.2 percent year-over-year, but rise 0.4 percent from October. Although the month-over-month increase indicates air cargo demand could be recovering, the most recent readings of export orders have been very close to indicating contraction.
   Meanwhile, Middle Eastern airfreight carriers increased volumes by 5.4 percent. This is much slower, however, than the 11.9 percent average growth those carriers experienced during the first 11 months of 2015. Slower growth resulted from some economies in the region being negatively impacted by the drop in oil prices, according to IATA.
   Latin American airfreight carriers saw November volumes drop 6.4 percent from the previous year, while African airfreight carriers saw volumes drop 6.0 percent year-over-year.
   Overall, for the first 11 months of 2015, only African, Asia-Pacific and Middle Eastern airfreight carriers experienced growth compared to the corresponding period in 2014.