According to data for the month of October released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) headwinds continue to affect global air cargo demand.
Global demand, measured in cargo tonne-kilometers, fell 13.6% compared to October 2021 (-13.5% for international operations).
IATA notes capacity was 0.6% below October 2021. This was the first year-on-year contraction since April 2022, however, month-on-month capacity increased by 2.4% in preparation for the year-end peak season. International cargo capacity grew 2.4% compared to October 2021.
North American carriers posted an 8.6% decrease in cargo volumes in October 2022 compared to the same month in 2021. Asia-Pacific airlines saw their air cargo volumes decrease by 14.7% compared to the same month in 2021. European carriers saw an 18.8% decrease in cargo volumes and Middle Eastern carriers experienced a 15.0% year-on-year decrease.
Latin American carriers reported a decrease in demand of 1.4% in cargo volumes in October 2022 compared to October 2021. This was the strongest performance of all regions. African airlines saw cargo volumes decrease by 8.3%.