International passenger traffic rose 5.1% in August 2012, despite sluggish air passenger demand, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
There was "a positive distortion" due to Ramadan, but after adjustment of the seasonal variations, passenger demand remained flat from June with a 1.2% rise since January.
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During August, capacity expansion rose moderately to 4.1%, while load factors rose 82.1% when compared to the same month in 2011.
The Middle East region reported the highest rise with a 16.7% increase in international passenger traffic during August, while the region recorded a capacity growth of 13.3% taking the load factor to 78.4%.
Europe, North America, Asia-Pacific and Latin America airlines reported respective rises of 5.6%, 0.5%, 2.9% and 6% in international passenger traffic during August 2012 when compared to the corresponding month in 2011.
IATA director general and CEO Tony Tyler said that passenger markets have not grown since June and global air freight volumes are below previous year levels.
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By GlobalData"In the face of these adverse conditions, disciplined capacity management has kept load factors high," Tyler said.
"There are always opportunities and some parts of the world are growing. But, overall, trading conditions are tough."
The global domestic passenger traffic increased 4.1% during the period, while India reported a 4.2% rise with 0.7% increase in capacity and load factor stood at 66.6%.
Japan’s domestic passenger demand declined 2.1% during the month, while Brazil, China and the US recorded rises of 9.4%, 10.8% and 2.4% respectively.
During August, air freight volumes declined 0.8% over the same month in 2011 and the carriers in Middle East, African and North America reported 11.3%, 10.2% and 2.0% rises respectively, while all other regions reported decline in air freight volumes.
Dubai International Airport reported a 10.4% rise in traffic with 4.3 million passengers recorded in May 2012.
