Taiwan-based airlines saw cargo volumes soar in the double digits in March, even as passenger demand stayed weak. Taiwanese carriers reported a combined volume of 233,523 tonnes for the month, representing a 35 percent jump year-on-year.

China Airlines’ cargo volume jumped 26.7 percent to 154,095 tonnes, whilst Evergreen subsidiaries EVA Air and Uni Airways saw cargo up 52.5 and 55.5 percent, respectively.

Mandarin Airlines was up 26.7 percent in March, whilst Daily Air saw cargo volume inch up 2.9 percent. Bucking the trend was Tigerair Taiwan, which saw cargo volume fall 99.2 percent.

Newcomer STARLUX Airlines reported a whopping 937.7 percent increase in cargo volume at 799 tonnes for the month.

Data from Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration recorded a 34.4 percent increase in cargo traffic for March at 259,113 tonnes, whilst passenger traffic was down 23.8 percent year-on-year during the period. The aviation authority saw aircraft movements climb 15.7 percent to 26,426 for the month, citing the increase in number of flights due to the vaccine rollout.