International air cargo rose slightly by 0.9 percent in 2013 to 96 million metric tonnes compared to 2012, with Asia-Pacific airports handling the largest amount of airfreight, according to the latest data from Airports Council International (ACI).
Mixed levels of growth were noted last year across the world’s six regions. Asia-Pacific airports processed 37 million metric tonnes, up 2.1 percent over 2012. North America handled 27.9 million metric tonnes, down 0.1 percent; Europe, 17.8 million metric tonnes, up 0.2 percent; Middle East, 6.5 million metric tonnes, up 3.9 percent; Latin America-Caribbean, 5.1 million metric tonnes, down 0.8 percent; and Africa, 1.8 million metric tonnes, down 3.4 percent.
The world’s air cargo market is highly concentrated, with the top 30 air cargo hubs handling 57 percent of global air cargo volumes, said ACI.
Hong Kong and Memphis, U.S., took the first and second ranks for the busiest air cargo airports, handling 4.17 million and 4.14 million metric tonnes, respectively. The two Shanghai airports handled 3.36 million tonnes combined, taking the third position in the air cargo hubs ranking.
Rounding off the top 10 list of busiest cargo airports last year were Incheon, South Korea; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Anchorage, Alaska; Louiseville, Kentucky; Frankfurt, Germany; Paris, France; and Tokyo, Japan.
“Preliminary airport traffic results for the first half of 2014 show encouraging signs of a steady recovery in the global passenger and cargo markets,” said Rafael Echevarne, director of economics and program development, ACI World.
He added that the cargo market has seen “a notable turnaround,” displaying an overall growth rate of 3.7 percent for the first half of 2014 compared with a net decline for the same period the previous year.
However, he said, the airport industry in general still faces growth challenges. “Indeed, there remains a lingering uncertainty surrounding demand for air transport worldwide. This is clearly influenced by social and political volatility in areas of the world such as Eastern Europe, the Middle East and West Africa. Whilst this volatility obviously has a direct negative impact on traffic at airports located in the affected areas, the potential for a contagious effect on traffic at airports in other parts of the world is real.”
Said Angela Gittens, the organization’s director general: “With many major economies remaining in a fragile state, 2013 can best be characterized as a year of unstable recovery for the global economy. Despite this challenging operating climate, worldwide traffic surpassed the 6 billion passenger mark in 2013. This represents an enormous feat for the airport industry.
“The opportunities that lay ahead for aviation are numerous, particularly in emerging markets,” Gittens continued. “Indeed, the huge demographic bases in many of these economies, coupled with rising per-capita income, will mean continued growth at airports in these markets. The growth in air transport demand and the services that airports provide will have a beneficial multiplier effect within local economies where airports operate, as well as across industries and the global economy.”
Photo: Maarten Visser
