The International Air Transport Association has announced its global passenger traffic numbers for February, which show a rebound in traffic growth after January’s dip in demand. IATA attributes this small dip and recovery to temporary factors, such as the later date of the Lunar New Year in 2018.
Total revenue passenger miles for the month of February rose 7.8 percent compared with February 2017. That’s up from 4.6 percent year-over-year growth in January.
Also for February, monthly capacity in available seat kilometers increased 6.3 percent, and load factor rose 0.9 percent to 80.4 percent, a new all-time high.
“As expected, we saw a return to stronger demand growth in February, after the temporary slowdown in January,” says Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s director general and CEO. “This is being supported by the robust economic backdrop and solid business confidence. However, increases in fuel prices – and labor costs in some countries – likely will temper the amount of traffic stimulation from lower airfares this year.”
A more detailed analysis of February’s passenger traffic can be found on IATA’s website.
