Global air cargo tonnages were up by 12% in the first half of 2024 compared to the first half of last year, according to preliminary figures and analysis from WorldACD Market Data. Tonnages in the second quarter was up 11% over last year, following on from the strong 12% increase in the first quarter.
Preliminary figures from June show a 9% increase in tonnages over the same period in 2023, slightly below average in the previous recorded months. For June, continued demand from Asia Pacific has sustained growth, though demand from Middle East and south Asia (MESA) origins have dropped back from the highly elevated tonnage growth levels in the first quarter.
However, both regions topped the tonnage growth for the first half of the year at 19% each. Asia Pacific’s growth in the second quarter was up 18% compared to the second quarter last year, following on from its 20% growth in the first.
Meanwhile, tonnages from MESA origins were still significantly higher than the equivalent period last year at 13%, but that growth figure was well below the 27% growth recorded in the first quarter of this year, from a region particularly affected by the disruptions to container shipping caused by the attacks on vessels in the Red Sea.
Demand in the first half of 2024 was also up from all the main world origin regions, with Asia Pacific and MESA origins topping the growth list at 19% each, and there were single-digit percentage increases from Africa with 8%, Europe with 7%, central south America at 5%, and North America with a 2% increase.
Air cargo tonnages up 10% in first half of 2024
