International air passenger traffic rose by 8.6 per cent in July compared to the same period last year, led by strong growth from Middle Eastern airlines, according to a report.

Announcing a robust demand growth for both domestic and international traffic, the International Air Transport Association (Iata) in its report said the total revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs) rose 8.2 per cent, which was an improvement on the June year-over-year increase of 5.5 per cent.

July capacity (available seat kilometers or ASKs) increased by 6.5 per cent, and load factor rose 1.4 percentage points to 83.6 per cent, it stated.

The airlines in the Middle East recorded a solid 19.8 per cent growth in passenger traffic buoyed by the timing of Ramadan, said a report.

The regional airlines' capacity rose 17.7 per cent and load factor climbed 1.5 percentage points to 79.6 per cent, stated the International Air Transport Association (Iata) in its report.

"Results were given a boost by the timing of Ramadan which fell partly in July this year but took place mostly in July in 2014. The holy month tends to subdue demand for air travel," the IATA said in the report.

“July results were strongly positive but slowing global trade and the wild gyrations of stock exchanges around the globe suggest that we may be in for some turbulence in coming months,” remarked Tony Tyler, the IATA’s director General and CEO.

July international passenger demand surged to a new high with airlines in all regions recording growth, including Africa for the first time this year. Total capacity climbed 6.5 per cent, pushing load factor up 1.6 percentage points to 83.5 per cent.

The Asia-Pacific airlines saw July traffic increase 8.5 per cent compared to the year-ago period. Capacity rose 6.5 per cent and load factor climbed 1.5 percentage points to 80.3 per cent.

The strong performance occurred despite notable declines in trade as well as slower than expected growth in China, said the report.

The European carriers’ demand increased by 6.7 per cent, reflecting economic recovery in the Eurozone, while capacity climbed four per cent and load factor rose 2.2 percentage points to 87.3 per cent, highest among the regions.

North American airlines’ traffic rose 5.3 per cent compared to July a year ago, which was more than double the 2.6 per cent rise achieved in June year over year.

Capacity climbed 3.5 per cent and load factor rose 1.4 percentage points to 86.5 per cent. Expectations for better economic performance are supporting travel demand.

The Latin American airlines too performed well with the July traffic climbing 8.5 per cent compared to last year. Capacity increased by eight per cent and load factor rose 0.4 percentage points to 82.7 per cent, it added.

Despite recessionary conditions in Brazil and Argentina trade volumes in the region showed strong improvement during the first half of the year, providing a boost to business-related international travel, said the report.

In a major to global aviation, the African airlines’ traffic moved into positive territory for the first time this year, rising 4.9 per cent.

However, the result could be owing to volatility in reported volumes, as fundamental economic drivers remain weak. Capacity rose 3.9 per cent, with the result that load factor improved 0.6 percentage points to 70.9 per cent, said IATA.

Domestic travel demand rose 7.6 per cent in July compared to July 2014. All markets showed growth with the strongest increases occurring in India and China. Domestic capacity climbed 6.5 per cent, and load factor improved 0.8 percentage points to 83.6 per cent, it added.

India’s domestic demand soared 28.1 per cent in July compared to a year ago likely owing to significant increases in service frequencies and improvements in economic growthm, said the global aviation body in its report.

China domestic traffic climbed 10.9 per cent year-over-year. Recent developments in the Chinese economy, including deep declines in the country’s stock exchange, have increased concerns about a further slowdown in the economy.

“Following a strong summer the outlook heading into autumn is unsettled to say the least. While passenger demand remains healthy, air cargo growth turned negative in July," remarked Tyler.

"The downward movement in stock markets around the globe reflects investors’ growing concerns about slowing trade and economic growth in emerging economies, as well as China’s continued shift towards domestic markets," he stated.
 
"Aviation’s connectivity creates economic opportunities and contributes to job creation. Governments looking to shore up consumer confidence and encourage spending should be encouraging greater connectivity by removing barriers to growth such as heavy taxes and charges and infrastructure constraints," he added.-TradeArabia News Service