Unlike the record high growth rates in global passenger numbers – up nearly eight per cent for the month of July – airfreight volumes were flat with respect to year-over-year growth for the month, according to the latest statistics from Airports Council International (ACI).

A slowdown in key emerging markets such as China, as well as oil producing economies, translated into weakness in other sectors of the economy. The strong correlation between changes in air freight volumes and the business cycle coupled with the fact that a high concentration of the world’s major air freight hubs are located in the Asia Pacific region has inevitably resulted in a slowdown.

The region’s top five airports experienced a contraction in freight volumes for the month of July with Hong Kong (HKG) dropping by 1.9 per cent. North American airfreight volumes were slightly more mixed with respect to year-on-year growth among the region’s busiest hubs. That being said, the net result was flat growth for the region as a whole.

Whereas Memphis (MEM), a FedEx hub, and Louisville (SDF), a UPS hub, experienced growth of 2.5 per cent and 4.2 per cent respectively, airports that have a larger international component to their freight saw volumes drop. Anchorage (ANC) and Miami (MIA) saw airfreight traffic drop by 5.6 per cent and 2.3 per cent respectively.