The growth of international airfreight posted a modest gain last year, just under 3 percent, but it’s hoped that number will grow in 2006 with increased demand from the IT and semiconductor industries, says the International Air Transport Association.
Freight growth is likely to return to more normal levels in the 6 percent range.
Carriers with the best performance last year hailed from the Middle East, which marked the highest growth rates for both passenger and freight--12.4 percent and 14 percent during the period from January to November 2005. During that same period, Asia-Pacific carriers saw passenger traffic grow at 6.6 percent, while freight expanded at a 3.9 percent rate. North American carriers reported a 9.1 percent increase in passenger traffic with freight contracting by 0.3 percent. European carriers turned in a similar performance, with passenger traffic up 6.4 percent, but freight increasing a weak 1.1 percent.
