Asia-Pacific Airlines Report 8.3% YoY Growth in Air Freight Demand in May

Air Freight

Asia-Pacific airlines recorded 8.3% YoY growth in air freight demand in May 2025, the strongest growth of all regions. Capacity also increased by 5.7% YoY.

Total global air freight demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers (CTK), increased by 2.2% in May 2025 compared to May 2024 (up 3% for international routes).

“Capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometers (ACTK), increased by two percent compared to May 2024 (+2.6 percent for international operations),” according to data released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

“Air cargo demand globally grew 2.2 percent in May. That is encouraging news as a 10.7 percent drop in traffic on the Asia to North America trade lane illustrated the dampening effect of shifting U.S. trade policies. Even as these policies evolve, already we can see the air cargo sector’s well-tested resilience helping shippers to accommodate supply chain needs to flexibly hold back, re-route or accelerate deliveries,” said Willie Walsh, IATA Director General. 

Regional Performance in May

North American airlines recorded a 5.8% year-on-year decline, the slowest growth of all regions. Capacity fell 3.2% year-on-year.

European airlines saw demand growth of 1.6% and capacity growth of 1.5% year-on-year.

Middle Eastern airlines saw demand growth of 3.6% while capacity grew 4.2% year-on-year.

Latin American airlines saw demand growth of 3.1% and capacity growth of 3.5% year-on-year.

African airlines saw air cargo demand fall 2.1% in May, even as capacity grew 2.7% year-on-year.

Growth on Trade Lanes

The update said that the significant decline in the Asia-North America trade lane was anticipated and has materialised as the effect of front-loading (moving goods to market before tariffs take effect) has weakened and changes to the de minimis rules for small parcel shipments (particularly those related to e-commerce) have been implemented. As cargo flows have been restructured, some route areas have responded with surprising growth.

The Europe-Asia lane reported 13.4% growth year-on-year, followed by the Middle East-Asia (+10.8%) and Intra-Asia (+9.1%).

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Source: Phaata.com (According to Indian Transport & Logistics News)

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