GENEVA, 4 Sept. 2011. Worldwide passenger air traffic was up 5.9 percent in July over the same month one year ago, bucking gloomy economic conditions, report analysts at the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in Geneva. Year-over domestic passenger travel throughout the world was up 3.5 percent in July, while international passenger traffic was up by 7.3 percent, IATA officials say.Compared to early 2008 before the global economic recession, international passenger traffic has expanded by 12 percent, IATA officials say. Domestic and international load factors increased to 83.1 percent over July 2010 to 83.1 percent -- an increase of half a percentage point. Leading global load factors are North American carriers at 86.9 percent, followed by European carriers 84.1 percent, and Latin American carriers at 79.6 percent.Global air freight traffic, meanwhile, decreased by 0.4 percent in July, IATA analysts say.
"With business and consumer confidence now tanking, sluggishness in international trade, and high fuel prices, the expectation is for a weaker end to the year," says Tony Tyler, IATA chief executive officer and director general. "We are already seeing this in the shrinking air freight markets," he says.
For more information contact IATA online at www.iata.org.
Related stories
-- IATA officials say February air passenger traffic was slowed due to political turmoil;
