Asian air traffic accelerates in 2014
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The growth of air passenger traffic in the Asia Pacific region accelerated in the first half of the year.
According to the latest data from IATA, international traffic on region’s carriers increased 6.1% in the January-June 2014 period – faster than the full-year growth rate of 5.3% seen in 2013.
And while the half-year growth was slightly slower than the global average of 6.4%, IATA stated that the outlook for Asia Pacific’s passenger aviation sector “remains broadly positive”.
In terms of domestic markets, China continued to see rapid improvements in the first half of 2014. The country’s domestic traffic surged 10.8% year-on-year, with load factors averaging more than 80%. Japan also saw solid growth in the first half, with traffic climbing 5.3%, while Australian domestic traffic increased 3.1% and India rose 2.0%.
In June 2014 alone, global air traffic increased 4.7%, and IATA’s director-general & CEO, Tony Tyler, said there was cause for optimism in the industry.
“June traffic growth at 4.7% is encouraging even though it is a slight weakening on May’s performance. Earlier signs of a softening in demand are dissipating. While that’s good news there are many risks in the political and economic environment that need careful monitoring,” said Tyler.
Middle Eastern carriers have seen some of the strongest growth so far in 2014, with traffic surging 13.9% in the first half. European airlines saw growth of 5.8%, while North America climbed 3.4%.
And while the global outlook is positive, IATA also warned of potential clouds on the horizon.
“Demand for air travel and the connectivity it provides remains strong,” said Tyler. “But uncertainty in the global political and economic climate has the potential to negatively impact demand.
“Risk is today’s reality, whether it’s conflict in the Middle East, sanctions and an impending trade war with Russia, possible default in Argentina or the Ebola outbreak in Western Africa. All have the potential to dent demand. We are optimistic that the industry will still end the year with an improvement in profitability over 2013.
“But the regional impact of some of these risks will challenge some airlines more than others,” he added.
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