Premium air traffic through the Middle East increased rapidly on long-haul routes, as international travel to Europe and the Far East went up 7.5 per cent and 6.6 per cent in March respectively, despite a broadly flat performance globally.

In its March Premium Traffic Monitor, the International Air Travel Association (Iata) reported that although an acceleration on the global premium travel market in February (up 2.3 per cent) saw the March performance numbers move up to 4.4 per cent, the growth trend remained considerably flat when considering the past six months

This reflected as a lagged response to the gradual slowdown in improvements in business confidence throughout the second half of 2014, with economic conditions in some emerging markets deteriorating.

However, major economies in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, continued to show robust economic performance.

Markit measures of business activity (both manufacturing and services) show sustained economic growth ahead in the region, with the latest whole economy PMI (Purchasing Managers' Indices) for the UAE persisting well in the growth territory of the indicators, the report said

Yet weakness appears to be creeping in again in other regions, with business activity in emerging markets contracting in April for the first time during the past 12 months. This could mean a continuation of the flat trend in volumes from late 2014, it said.

One of the regions that seemed promising was Europe, with premium international air travel going up 7.8 per cent within the region in March, compared to 0.4 per cent in February. This showed signs of a pick-up in business confidence in the euro zone which could support growth ahead. – TradeArabia News Service