The Asia-Pacific air cargo sector continued its recovery with strong volume growth in April on the back of export expansion to Europe and North America, according to the latest figures from WorldACD.
The region posted a cargo expansion of 9 percent year-over-year, mostly through exports, as business within the region did not improve much.
Worldwide, the solid first-quarter growth logged by the global air cargo industry continued into April 2014, with the month showing a volume growth of 6.3 percent year-over-year, a little below the growth for the first quarter of 6.8 percent.
Revenues in April stood firm, growing by almost 5 percent compared to April last year, while revenues in the first quarter rose 4 percent compared to the same period in 2013.
North America had a standout month, with outgoing volumes rising by 10 percent year-over-year, thanks to strong business to Europe and Asia- Pacific, and incoming tonnage inching up by 9 percent.
Europe showed the least growth in outgoing cargo at 2 percent but ballooned 9 percent in incoming traffic.
WorldACD has its expectations up for the full year 2014 after comparing the 2013 outgoing and incoming performance of top origin cities against 2012.
It said that the big centers in Europe, the Middle East, and South Asia did better than average in 2013 and “look set for doing the same in 2014.” The main centers in the United States also seem to be heading for smoother times in 2014, as are those in the Pearl River Delta. Tokyo/Osaka is rebounding from the slump ex Japan, and Nairobi is also moving again.
Lastly, a number of the newer cargo centers continue to climb the ladder, including Oslo in Norway, Manila in the Philippines, Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, Quito in Ecuador, and Karachi, Pakistan.
Photo: Emran Kassim
