Air cargo was standout performer last year airlines moving more air cargo than ever before. It was a year of profitable growth. Demand, which rose by 11.3% year-on-year, was boosted by strong e-commerce and various ocean shipping restrictions, says Willie Walsh, Director-General, IATA.
CT Bureau
IATA released data for the full year for 2024. “Air cargo was the standout performer last year with airlines moving more air cargo than ever before. Importantly, it was a year of profitable growth. Demand, which rose by 11.3 per cent year-on-year, was boosted by e-commerce and various ocean shipping curbs. This combined with airspace restrictions limited capacity on some key long-haul routes helped to keep yields at exceptionally high levels. While average yields continued to soften from peaks in 2021 to 22, they averaged 39 per cent higher than 2019,” explained Willie Walsh, Director-General, IATA.
Full-year demand for 2024, measured in cargo tonne-kilometres (CTKs), increased to 11.3 per cent (12.2% for international operations) compared to 2023. Full-year 2024 demand exceeded the record volumes set in 2021.
- Full-year capacity in 2024, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometres (ACTKs), increased by 7.4 per cent as compared to 2023 (9.6% for international operations)
- Full-year yields averaged 1.6 per cent lower than 2023 but 39 per cent higher than
in 2019 - December 2024 brought the year to a close with continued strong performance. Global demand was 6.1 per cent above December 2023 levels (7.0% for international operations). Global capacity was 3.7 per cent above December 2023 levels (5.2% for international operations). Cargo yields were 6.6 per cent higher than December 2023 (and 53.4% higher than in December 2019).
Looking to 2025, IATA estimates growth to moderate to 5.8 per cent, aligned with historical performance. “Economic fundamentals point to another good year for air cargo—with oil prices on a downward trajectory and trade continuing to grow. There is no doubt, however, that the air cargo industry will be challenged to adapt to unfolding geopolitical shifts. The first week of the Trump administration demonstrated its strong interest in using tariffs as a policy tool that could bring a double whammy for air cargo—boosting inflation and deflating trade,” said Walsh.
Factors in the operating environment include:
- Global trade in goods grew by 3.6 per cent annually in 2024
- In December, manufacturing output PMI (49.2) and new export orders PMI (48.2) were below threshold represented by the 50 mark, indicating a decline in global manufacturing production and exports
- USA headline inflation, based on the annual CPI, rose by 0.2 percentage points to 2.9 per cent in December. In the same month, the inflation rate in EU increased by 0.2 percentage points to 2.7 per cent. China’s consumer inflation fell by 0.1 percentage points to 0.1 per cent in December.
