News / Clearer skies for air freight with growth set to continue after 2016 ends on a high note

Favourable one-off incidents and improving performances across European economies caused airfreight to outperform global GDP in 2016, with that growth forecast to continue into 2017.

At yesterday’s International Air Transport Association (IATA) cargo media day, George Anjaparidze, senior economist at IATA, said October saw the fastest rate of airfreight growth in 18 months, at 8.2%, outstripping capacity growth, with available freight tonne km (AFTKs) up 3.6% globally.

“At the end of the year we are expecting GDP to post its slowest rate of ...