Air cargo rates up 12% in August: WorldACD

Prices from Asia Pacific origins up 22% YoY at $3.26 per kilo; rates from MESA up 58% YoY

Air cargo rates up 12% in August: WorldACD
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Worldwide air cargo demand and pricing have stayed strong throughout August with tonnages up +10 percent, year on year (YoY), and rates 12 percent above last year’s levels, according to the latest analysis from WorldACD Market Data.

"August’s YoY comparison figures are similar to those in July 2024 when chargeable weight was up +13 percent and rates showed a +10 percent improvement. Compared with July, total flown chargeable weight dipped slightly in August, down two percent, but average yields edged up by a further one percent to $2.49 per kilo – based on a full-market average of spot rates and contract rates."

Prices from Asia Pacific origins also rose by a further one percent in August compared with July, to $3.26 per kilo, taking them +22 percent above their equivalent level last year, the update added. "Rates from Middle East & South Asia (MESA) origins rose by another three percent to average $2.81 per kilo, taking them +58 percent higher than last August’s levels. Both those key regions saw tonnages slip slightly in August compared with July by three percent and two percent, respectively."

Busy Q4 ahead
The relatively robust performance of the market throughout the summer in the northern hemisphere will leave air cargo stakeholders anticipating a busy fourth quarter (Q4) peak season, likely to be characterised by high and rising prices that reflect high load factors and shortages of available capacity on certain head-haul lanes, especially from Asia, the update added. "In addition to the usual rise in seasonal demand in the final months of the year, air cargo looks set to experience an additional seasonal spike from e-commerce shipments, especially from China and Hong Kong, as it has in the last two cycles."

Potential industrial action at U.S. East Coast and Gulf container ports could lead to further conversion of sea to air cargo in addition to that already occurring due to the disruptions to Red Sea shipping, the update added.

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