US carriers have reported their worst quarter for cargo ever, in the first three months of 2009, recording a 21.1 per cent decline in traffic despite some signs of growing demand late in the quarter, according to the Air Transport Association. The carriers saw traffic fall 20.9 per cent in March from the same month a year ago, but traffic measured in cargo ton miles grew 11.7 per cent from February to March – the first month-on-month increase the US carriers have seen since October. Traffic in all regions fell at a steep rate, including a 28 per cent drop in trans-Pacific trade and a 17.7 per cent year-over-year slide in domestic traffic. Recent reports from individual carriers suggest demand remains weak even if it has stabilised.