IAG Cargo today announced its Q2 results from 1 April to 30 June 2015, reporting an 8.8 per cent increase in commercial revenue to €259 million versus the same period last year. IAG Cargo’s revenue growth comes during a period of network expansion, with a capacity increase of 2.1 per cent. Freight volume also dipped by 1.4 per cent to 214,000 tonnes. IAG said that in the second quarter, challenging market conditions placed pressure on yields which decreased 3.0 per cent at constant exchange.

First-half revenues came in at €505 million, an increase of 3.5 per cent on 2014, while volume declined two per cent to 432,000 tonnes. Stripping out the impact of currency changes, first half revenue shrank by eight per cent, largely due to the reduction in freighter operations after IAG Cargo terminated the lease of three B747-8Fs in the second quarter of 2014 and bought space on Qatar Airways’ B777 freighter service between London Stansted and Hong Kong.

“Over the last three years IAG Cargo has been on a relentless drive to restructure our business and implement an operating model that performs well during market fluctuations,” said Steve Gunning, CEO at IAG Cargo. “On the back of a strong Q1 and a softer Q2 market, IAG Cargo has delivered a set of results that demonstrates the resilience and adaptability of our business.

“Successes over the quarter include a record growth in our Premium Product tonnage; the introduction of a simplified freight rate structure for our customers; opening a new route into Kuala Lumpur and bringing two new Constant Climate stations online. We have also added 47 flights to our EuroConnector service, providing customers with a greater array of options for shipping goods into, around and out of Europe.”