Asia Pacific airline passenger volume rises 5.2% in 2012

MANILA, Philippines - Airlines in the Asia-Pacific region including the Philippines booked a passenger growth of 5.2 percent last year on the back of the revival of the Chinese economy as well as other economies in the region.

Data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) showed that last year’s passenger demand was at par with the global growth of 5.3 percent and was stronger than the four-percent increase recorded in 2011 that was affected by the tsunami in Japan.

“The 2012 performance was in line with the global average and contributed about a fifth of the total industry growth. After a slow start, the fourth quarter was boosted by a revival in the Chinese economy and strengthening momentum in Asian exports and imports,” IATA stated in a report.

It added that carriers in the region, including the Philippines, booked a capacity expansion of just three percent for the year keeping the load factor at a healthy average of 77.5 percent.

IATA said global passenger volume grew 5.3 percent last year or slightly lower than the 5.9 percent growth booked in 2011. Load factors last year were near record levels at 79.1 percent.

IATA director general and chief executive officer Tony Tyler said demand in international markets expanded at a faster rate of six percent than domestic travel of four percent.

“Passenger demand grew strongly in 2012 despite the economic bad news that dominated much of the last 12 months. This demonstrates just how integral global air travel is for today’s connected world. At the same time, near-record load factors illustrate the extreme care with which airlines manage capacity,” Tyler said.

Growth and high aircraft utilization combined to help airlines deliver an estimated $6.7 billion profit in 2012 despite high fuel prices but with a net profit margin of just one percent.

International passenger demand grew six percent last year with the Middle East posting the fastest growth of 15.4 percent, Latin America with 8.4 percent, Africa with 7.5 percent, Europe with 5.3 percent andAsia-Pacific with 5.2 percent.

On the other hand, domestic air travel grew four percent, with China growing 9.5 percent and Brazil with 8.6 percent, emerging as the strongest performers while India was the weakest with a 2.1 percent contraction.

In contrast to the growth in the passenger market, Tyler said the air cargo market contracted by 1.5 percent.

 â€œThe industry suffered a one-two punch. World trade declined sharply. And the goods that were traded shifted toward bulk commodities more suited for sea shipping. The outstanding bright spot was the development of trade between Asia and Africa which supported strong growth for airlines based in the Middle East and Africa,” he said.

IATA is entering 2013 with some guarded optimism as business confidence is up.

“The Eurozone situation is more stable than it was a year-ago and the US avoided the fiscal cliff. Significant headwinds remain. There is no end in sight for high fuel prices and GDP growth is projected at just 2.3 percent,” he said.