The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has said that international scheduled air traffic figures in January 2010 showed continuing signs of improvement, but at the same time the industry should remain cautious about its future.
According to IATA, demand in international passenger traffic rose by 6.4% in January 2010 compared to the previous year.
In January, a 1.2% increase in passenger capacity pushed load factors to 75.9%, compared to the 72.2% recorded during January 2009.
International passenger traffic has increased by 8.6%, compared to the low point in the slump in February 2009.
In January 2010, Asia-Pacific carriers experienced a 6.5% increase in demand compared to the previous year, while North American carriers experienced a 2.1% increase and European carriers saw a 3.1% increase.
Both North American and European carriers have gained 6% from the early 2009 lows, but the increase has remained 4-6% below early 2008 peak levels.
Middle Eastern carriers experienced a 23.6% increase in January, while Latin American carriers saw demand increased by 11%, which was driven by the strong domestic economy.
Robust regional economic activity helped African carriers to record a 6.3% improvement in January.
According to IATA, demand must improve by 2% to touch the peak levels of early 2008.
IATA director general and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said the industry can start to view the future with cautious optimism, but that the better volumes do not necessarily mean better profits.
"Passenger yields are still 15% below peak and we expect 2010 losses to be US$5.6bn," Bisignani said.
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