Asia Pacific Airlines Traffic Results – July 2018
Encouraging growth maintained
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Preliminary traffic figures for the month of July released
by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) showed sustained growth in international
air passenger markets, whilst air cargo demand remained firm despite moderating
expansion in the global services and manufacturing sectors.
Boosted by strong leisure travel demand during the holiday season, the region’s airlines
registered a 7.6% growth in the number of international passengers carried to a combined
total of 31.4 million in July. In revenue passenger kilometre (RPK) terms, demand grew by
7.3%, underscoring continued strength in short-haul travel markets. The average
international passenger load factor climbed 1.2 percentage points higher to 82.7% for the
month, on a 5.7% expansion in available seat capacity.
In July, international air cargo demand as measured in freight tonne kilometres (FTK)
recorded an encouraging 5.0% increase compared with the same month last year.
Consumer confidence so far seems relatively unaffected by the political rhetoric including
threats of protectionist measures. The average international freight load factor declined by
0.5 percentage points to 64.4% for the month, following a 5.9% expansion in offered freight capacity.
Commenting on the results, Mr. Andrew Herdman, AAPA Director General said, “The solid
pattern of growth seen in the first half of the year continued into the month of July, with
Asian airlines reporting further increases in both international passenger traffic and air
cargo volumes, sustained by broad-based growth in the global economy.”
“Overall, during the first seven months of the year, the number of international passengers
grew by 7.9% to a combined total of 207 million. During the same period, air cargo demand remained relatively robust, growing by 5.1% on top of the strong performance we saw last year.”
Looking ahead, Mr. Herdman said, “For the upcoming months, the global economic outlook
remains positive, despite some concern that uncertainties over future trade policy could
undermine business confidence internationally. On a more positive note, both the United
States and China have announced expansionary fiscal measures, which should stimulate
domestic demand in the advanced and emerging market economies, and hopefully mitigate
any adverse impact from new tariff barriers.”
“Adapting to changes in consumer trends in a dynamic marketplace, Asian airlines are
growing revenue through new product and service offerings. At the same time, airlines are
making further improvements to operational efficiency in a bid to manage costs and
maintain profitability.”
TRAFFIC UPDATE
PRELIMINARY
International Scheduled Services of Asia Pacific Airlines
International Jul-18 Jul-17 % Change Jan-Jul 2018 Jan-Jul 2017 % Change
Passengers (Thousand) 31,404 29,178 + 7.6% 207,077 191,914 + 7.9%
RPK (Million) 117,774 109,797 + 7.3% 764,569 710,297 + 7.6%
ASK (Million) 142,425 134,735 + 5.7% 945,236 886,834 + 6.6%
Passenger Load Factor 82.7% 81.5% + 1.2 pp 80.9% 80.1% + 0.8 pp
FTK (Million) 6,317 6,015 + 5.0% 41,578 39,569 + 5.1%
FATK (Million) 9,808 9,265 + 5.9% 66,167 61,836 + 7.0%
Freight Load Factor 64.4% 64.9% – 0.5 pp 62.8% 64.0% – 1.2 pp
Effective January 2018, the dataset comprises aggregated traffic data from the following 36 Asia Pacific based carriers: 3K,
5J, 6E, 9C, 9W, AI, AK, BI, BR, CA, CI, CX, CZ, D7, GA, HO, HU, JL, JQ, KA, KC, KE, MH, MU, NH, NZ, OZ, PG, PR, QF,
SG, SQ, TG, TR, VA and VN.
• Previous year data adjusted for comparison purposes
• RPK = revenue passenger kilometres
• ASK = available seat kilometres
• FTK = freight tonne kilometres
• FATK = available freight tonne kilometres
• All figures, including estimates for missing data, are provisional