Global air passenger demand falls 0.5pc in September amid Middle East, North America weakness
KUALA LUMPUR: Global air passenger demand fell 0.5 per cent in September from the same month last year, reflecting weakness in the Middle East and North America.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reported a 0.5 percent decline in global air passenger demand in September, compared to the same month last year. This decline was primarily driven by weakness in the Middle East and North America. When excluding the Middle East, demand grew by 0.3 percent. IATA's senior vice-president and chief economist, Marie Owens Thomsen, noted that the figures represented an improvement from August, with most international markets resuming growth.
Overall, global scheduled seat capacity is expected to remain above 2025 levels in October and November, but growth remains slow and uneven across regions. International passenger demand increased by 0.4 percent in September, while capacity rose by 0.5 percent year-on-year. The load factor stood at 83.6 percent. Most key international routes showed improvement from August, with some returning to growth while others experienced slower decline rates.
In Asia-Pacific, demand increased by 0.7 percent year-on-year, with capacity growing by 0.4 percent and the load factor at 83.1 percent. Traffic grew on four of the six largest international route areas serving Asia-Pacific, while traffic declined by 0.9 percent on routes within Asia, a slower decline compared to August.
Written by urgent.news from New Straits Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
