Premium air traffic through the Middle East increased over the recent months, with international travel to Africa and Europe jumping 22.8 per cent and 7.1 per cent respectively, in May.

Furthermore, premium travel to the Far East also recorded an 8.3 per cent increase in May.

In its May Premium Traffic Monitor, the International Air Travel Association (Iata) reported that global travel on international markets shot up 6.2 per cent in May, mainly driven by the within Europe market (up 5.1 per cent).

The surge in within Europe market travel was supported by improvements in the Eurozone, which translated to stronger demand for travel in both premium and economy classes.

Major economies in the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have also shown robust growth in the second quarter of the year, helping sustain solid growth in air travel demand to/from the region.

On the other hand, economic weakness in Asia and the Far East seems to show downside risks for growth in international air travel, with China’s decline in trade activity touching 10 per cent in the first quarter compared to Q4 last year.

Although adverse economic developments in some emerging markets may hamper international travel numbers, better conditions in advanced economies are likely to sustain the recent acceleration in passenger numbers.

One such region is the Eurozone, which has seen increases in business activity despite fragile economic conditions in the midst of on-going troubles with the Greek economy.

Efforts by the European Central Bank (ECB) to stimulate economic growth have led to an improvement in business and consumer sentiment in the region, and this has now started to translate to stronger demand for air travel with the region.

Premium travel growth within Europe was up 7.6 per cent in May year-on-year, and economy class travel rose 5.0 per cent, both well above their respective trends year-to-date. – TradeArabia News Service