Cargo volume up by 3.1 percent y/y for Hong Kong Airport in January

Mar 17, 2017: Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) has handled 372,000 tonnes of cargo in the first month of 2017. This represents an increase of 3.1 percent in cargo volume compared to the same period last year.

Growth in cargo throughput was mainly due to an 8 percent increase in exports. Amongst key trading regions, traffic to and from Europe and North America showed the most significant increases.

The airport has handled 6.2 million passengers in January, or 4.8 percent more than the same period last year, while flight movements increased by 0.3 percent year on year to 35,315. Passenger traffic growth was largely driven by the surge in Hong Kong resident travel during the Chinese New Year holidays, which saw a year-on-year rise of 24 percent. Passenger traffic to and from Japan, Europe and Southeast Asia registered the most significant increases.

On a rolling 12-month basis, passenger volume and flight movements at HKIA grew by 2.3 percent and 0.9 percent to 70.8 million and 411,630 respectively compared to the same period last year. Cargo throughput rose by 3.4 percent to 4.5 million tonnes.

Vivian Cheung, deputy director, Airport Operations of Airport Authority Hong Kong, said, “The airport community made an excellent concerted effort to maintain smooth operations at HKIA during the festive period. From January 26 to February 1, HKIA handled an average of approximately 200,000 daily passengers and 1,115 daily flight movements.”

"We are also delighted to have our newest member, the robot Timmy, joining us and making his debut as an ambassador to greet travellers during the Chinese New Year holidays. Equipped with microphone and camera, Timmy can greet and interact with passengers and always loves to pose for photos. We are exploring more opportunities to enhance our services and facilities by using the latest technologies," added Cheung.