Silver lining on the horizon for aviation?
During February 2020, Asia air cargo demand held up well, despite the effects of factory closures and lockdowns in China crippling the supply and distribution of manufactured goods nationwide and related international trade flows. These declines were partly offset by higher demand for air shipments of intermediate goods, including pharmaceutical and food supplies.
According to the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), its members registered a 3% yoy decline in international air cargo demand in freight tonne kilometres (ftk) terms - much less than the revenue passenger kilometres (rpk) demand (-34.8%).
Offered freight capacity fell by a sharp 13.5%, with belly-hold capacity declining in tandem with the progressive cuts in the number of PAX flights. As a result, the average international freight load factor increased by 6.5 percentage points to 60.3% for the month. (ah)