Business Digest
Lower fares help spur Asia-Pacific International passenger expansion
February 1st 2016
For Asia-Pacific carriers, international air passenger demand continued to record strong growth in November, with 22.4 million international passengers carried by the region’s airlines, which was 6.6% more than the same month last year. Read More » Measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), demand grew by a healthy 8.6% on the back of robust leisure travel demand. The average international passenger load factor strengthened by1.9 percentage points, to 76.6%, for the month, after accounting for a 5.8% expansion in available seat capacity.
For the eleven months from January to November 2015, Asian airlines carried 251.9 million international passengers, an increase of 8.1%. Despite moderation in emerging market economies, demand remained healthy, supported by affordable airfares.
No recovery on the horizon for Asia-Pacific air cargo
In contrast to the growth in international air passenger markets, air cargo demand remained soft in November, a reflection of the slowdown in world trade activity. Demand in freight tonne kilometre (FTK) terms fell by 2.4% year-on-year, as a result of declining exports and imports from the main manufacturing economies in Asia, notably China. After accounting for a 1.4% expansion in offered freight capacity, the average international freight load factor fell by 2.6 percentage points, to 66.0%, for the month.
For the first eleven months of the year, growth in international air freight demand narrowed to 1.8%. The average international freight load factor of 63.7% for the January-November period was 1.2 percentage points lower than the same period last year.
Asia-Pacific international passenger traffic expands but air cargo flat in 2015
In 2015, the region’s airlines recorded a robust 7.9% increase in the number of international passengers carried to an aggregate total of 276.3 million, boosted by lower oil prices leading to the widespread availability of competitive airfares. The average international passenger load factor increased by 1.4 percentage points, to 78.4%, for the year, after accounting for an 8.2% increase in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) and a 6.3% expansion in available seat capacity.
International air cargo business, calculated in freight tonne kilometres (FTK), registered a 1.6% increase for the year, reflecting the slowdown in global trade conditions. Offered freight capacity increased by 3.5%, leading to a deterioration in the average international freight load factor, by 1.3 percentage points, to 63.7% for the year.
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This report was compiled by the Research and Statistics Department of the AAPA Secretariat.
