The AAPA<.> international passenger traffic, measured in revenue passenger kilometres (RPK), rose by 3.7% in May this year, compared to May 2001, while the number of passengers carried (PAX) was up 4.9%. Seat capacity declined by 1.5%, resulting in a 3.5-percentage point increase in load factor to 70.9%.

The number of passengers carried within the Asia Pacific region grew by 5.6% as compared to 3.8% in April, while between Asia Pacific and Europe the growth was 10.8%. The Transpacific route, in contrast, remained subdued, dropping by 6.2%, although the rate of decline somewhat moderated when compared to April, which was down by more than 11% over 2001.

International freight traffic, measured in freight tonne kilometres (FTK), rose by 22.5% in May. Although the huge increase could partly be attributed to a relatively low base in May 2001, the freight market has definitely shown signs of recovery. Capacity rose by 9.9%, resulting in a 6.9-percentage point increase in load factor to 67.1%.

Commenting on the figures, the Director General of the AAPA, Mr. Richard Stirland said, The May passenger traffic saw the first significant improvement in over a year. He added, As for freight traffic, the year-to-date growth is already at an encouraging 10.1%, and with anticipation of steady trade improvement, freight traffic should register double-digit growth for the calendar year 2002.