While much of the world is still realing from the sharp decline in cargo volumes, Dubai International Airport has recorded only a small decline in cargo throughput of 0.76 per cent for the first six months of this year compared with the same period last year. And, it is likely to end the year on the same levels as last year, a senior executive of Dubai Airports said. In the first half of 2009, the airport moved 874,828 tonnes of cargo compared to 2008 when it handled 1.83 million tonnes of cargo which was up 9.4 per cent from 2007. “We record an increase one month and a decrease in another. At the end of the year, I expect the total air cargo handled to be between 1.7 to 1.8 million tonnes, almost the same tonnage that Dubai handled last year,” Dubai Airports,VP cargo unit, Ali Al Jallaf told Emirates Business. Almost 60 to 70 per cent of the total cargo handled at Dubai International is trans-shipment cargo, said Al Jallaf. “Dubai offers a lot of flexibility to shippers as it is Emirates’ hub and, therefore, cargo can be shipped to any part of the world,” he said.