The International Air Transport Association, IATA, has revealed that global passenger traffic soared by 7.1 per cent in January 2016 when compared to January 2015.
The global regulator said the result was ahead of the 2015 full year growth rate of 6.5 per cent. January capacity rose 5.6 per cent, with the result that load factor rose 1.1 percentage points to 78.8 per cent the highest load factor ever recorded for the first month of the year.
The Director-General, IATA, Tony Tyler in a statement by the organization said that January maintained the strong traffic growth trend seen in 2015, showing the resilience of demand for connectivity despite recent turmoil in equity markets.
Tyler explained that the record load factor was a result of strong demand for the agency’s product and airlines making the most productive use of their assets.
“Underlying conditions point to another strong year for passenger traffic, with the latest decline in oil prices likely providing additional stimulus for air travel growth,” he added.
On the international market, IATA said January international passenger traffic leaped 7.3 per cent compared to the year-ago period.
Capacity in the month under review rose 5.9 per cent and load factor rose 1.0 percentage point to 78.8 per cent. All regions recorded year-over-year increases in demand. Asia Pacific carriers recorded an increase of 10.3 per cent compared to January 2015.
