Global air cargo traffic, measured by chargeable weight, experienced a 9% week-on-week decline in week 22, which ran from 25 to 31 May, according to the latest weekly figures from WorldACD Market Data. The drop was largely attributed to the coinciding public holidays of Pentecost, US Memorial Day, and Eid al-Adha, and was similar to the 8% volume decrease recorded in the same week last year. Despite the slowdown in traffic, pricing rose by 2% week on week, while capacity contracted by 1%.

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WorldACD Market Data reported that volumes fell from all origin regions on a weekly basis, with declines ranging from 3% out of Asia Pacific and Central and South America to steeper drops of 20% from Africa and 21% from the Middle East & South Asia region. The report noted that unlike the single-day Memorial Day in the United States and Pentecost in Europe, the Eid al-Adha festival lasted four days, which explained the pronounced volume decreases in traffic originating from MESA and Africa.

Specifically, chargeable weight from MESA to Europe fell 17% week on week, as volumes from Dubai and Bangladesh dropped 25% and 45% respectively, while traffic from India shrank 4%. The impact was also notable in the opposite direction, with double-digit weekly declines in volumes from Europe to MESA, down 22%, and to Africa, down 17%.

On a year-on-year basis, WorldACD Market Data indicated that overall volume was down 3%, with North American outbound traffic also falling 3%. Double-digit percentage declines were recorded from Europe, Africa, and MESA, while Asia Pacific and Central and South America registered single-digit volume gains compared to the same period last year.

The MESA region was the primary driver behind a 1% week-on-week contraction in global capacity, marking the second such retreat since the outbreak of the war in the Middle East. The first decline was a 2% weekly drop in week 19, triggered by the Super Golden Week in Asia Pacific and the end of the Mother’s Day flower shipment rush. While capacity was unchanged or down 1% from all other regions, MESA showed a 6% weekly decline.

Volumes from Asia Pacific to Europe and the United States slipped 2% and 1% respectively week on week, with chargeable weight to Europe declining from all origins except China, Vietnam, and Thailand, which posted gains between 1% and 4%. Flows to the US from Hong Kong, South Korea, Thailand, and Indonesia showed weekly volume gains between 2% and 4%, while China exports were flat and other origins suffered declines ranging from 2% to 9%.

Source: IndexBox Market Intelligence Platform