Air passenger traffic rises in July

IATA has released its air traffic data for July, which shows passenger travel on international travel was up 6.8% in July year-on-year, reflecting an upward bias due to the timing of Ramadan.

Both travel classes showed an above-trend rise in July year-on-year – premium travel was up 8.5% and economy travel rose 6.6%. But the July year-on-year comparisons reflect the impacts of the timing of Ramadan, which fell only partly in July this year but took place mostly in July in 2014. The holy month tends to subdue demand for air travel, IATA noted.

International passenger numbers continue to show a broadly positive trend for both economy and business travel classes in 2015. But economy class travel – the more price sensitive travel market – has experienced stronger growth so far this year, supported by lower fares over recent months.

Growth in premium international travel has been relatively slower due to weakness in business travel demand drivers, with global business confidence being dragged down by emerging markets.

“For the second consecutive month, we are seeing slow growth within the Far East. This result could be early signs of weakness in air travel demand following months of sluggish economic performance in some parts of Asia,” IATA said in a statement.

“Looking ahead, although improvements in the Eurozone economy have translated into stronger demand for travel in both premium and economy classes over recent months, weakness in emerging markets could counter this positive trend. The July data for some markets suggests downside risks may already be materialising.”