Preliminary traffic results for 2008 show that for the full year, worldwide passenger traffic remained flat, thanks to strong growth in the first quarter which balanced the year-end decline, whereas year-end results in the freight sector, which did not benefit from any significant surge in traffic during the year, retracted in 2008 (international freight -3%, domestic -7% and the worldwide average -4.5%).

For the month of December 2008, global passenger traffic growth fell by 6 percent as compared to December 2007, as did international and domestic traffic. The top 10 international airports all reported declines led by Bangkok (-42%), London Gatwick (-14%), Incheon (-13%) and Tokyo Narita (-10%).  Dubai was the only exception registering a 5 percent increase, and the only region on the rise was the Middle East with a 7 percent increase in international traffic.

Domestic passenger traffic results were buoyed by China where the large airports showed double-digit increases once again led by Beijing (+22%), but the strong increase in China was offset by continued weak performance in India and the US where the large airports (Los Angeles, Chicago, Las Vegas and the New York City airports) suffered double-digit reductions. European domestic traffic (-12%) was strongly impacted by the Spanish market, with Madrid and Barcelona reporting reductions of 19 percent and 24 percent respectively.

Freight traffic was heavily impacted by the devastating global economic climate in December 2008, with worldwide freight down by 20 percent, international freight by 25 percent and domestic by 9 percent.

ACI World Director General Angela Gittens comments, "December terminated a turbulent and sobering year for the airport industry. A very promising first quarter was followed by steadily decreasing demand, resulting in a flat finish for the year. Domestic traffic in the US was particularly hard hit due to high fuel prices earlier in the year and the subsequent economic crisis, whereas international traffic performance was bolstered by good results in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America markets. There are, however, no safe havens for freight.  Further deterioration in the air freight sector can be expected over the next two quarters, reflecting the constricted global trade and commerce environment in which we are operating."

Airports and their aviation partners will have the opportunity to review the world situation, its impact on airport business and the future outlook at the ACI Economics and Finance Conference held in London on 10-11 February. This conference is jointly hosted by ACI World and ACI Europe.

“When we first began planning for this event, the key concern for the industry was the high price of fuel,” says ACI World Economics Director Andreas Schimm. “Within six short months the entire focus shifted to the growing world financial crisis and its implications for airport planning, capacity and long-term investments.  An overall contraction in 2009 is inevitable and could be as strong as -4 percent according to ACI's recently revised short term forecast. We hope to see the bottom of this accelerated downward passenger traffic trend in the first quarter 2009 and a slow stabilisation of traffic figures during the rest of the year. The conference will provide an excellent forum for discussing strategies to meet this challenge and deal with constantly shifting economic climate."

Gittens concludes, “The aviation industry has experienced and survived economic cycles and crises in the past. The long term forecast for traffic growth remains basically unchanged. We must work closely with our aviation partners, despite current setbacks, to prepare for the resurgence of global markets. We cannot sit back to see what happens next. Our industry must continue to invest now to ensure that tomorrow we are ready to serve the billions of passengers who rely on us for efficient service in an environmentally sustainable manner.”