HK airport cargo traffic rises 38pct in April

Air cargo tonnage at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) registered a positive growth for the seventh consecutive month, surging 38 percent year-on-year to 354,000 tonnes in April.

Air traffic movements also increased by 2.7 percent over last April to 24,725. Passenger volume declined 1.5 percent to approximately 4.2 million.

The strong cargo growth was mainly attributed to the continued recoveries in HKIA’s key export markets, in particular North America and Europe.

Exports recorded an increase of 57 percent, while imports and transshipments showed year-on-year growth of 30 percent and 10 percent respectively.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong resident travel registered a year-on-year decline of 4 percent, and transfer-transit traffic dropped by 9 percent.

However, visitor numbers showed an increase of 8 percent, which was driven by traffic to and from South East Asia and North Asia.

Speaking about the performance of the passenger market, Stanley Hui Hon-chung, Chief Executive Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong, said: “The exceptionally strong Easter holiday traffic of last year had already created a high base for comparison. Then, Iceland’s volcanic eruption and the Black Outbound Travel Alert for Thailand (Bangkok) this year further impacted travel.”

“As a result, there predictably was a slight decline in passenger throughput last month. However, growth momentum for passenger traffic remains strong, and I am confident we will continue to see an improvement in these numbers over the coming months.”

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/257737/hong-kong-airport-cargo-traffic-rises-38-april

 

Category: Hong Kong