The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for global air cargo markets in June 2026, showing an 8.5% year-on-year growth in total demand (cargo tonne-kilometers or CTK). International operations performed even stronger, up 9.6%.
Global air cargo capacity (measured in available cargo tonne-kilometers or ACTK) also expanded, rising 4.4% compared to June 2025 (+4.9% for international operations). With demand growth comfortably outpacing capacity expansion at both the global level and across almost all regions, the industry saw solid operational efficiency gains.
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Demand Outpaces Capacity: Global cargo load factor (CLF) rose 1.7 percentage points to 46.9%.
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Economic Drivers: Global trade expanded by 5.2% year-on-year. Air cargo outperformed broader trade growth, driven by urgent shipments and strong demand for high-value technology products.
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Operating Costs: Jet fuel prices dropped 20% month-on-month in June, though they remained 45.8% above levels seen in the same period last year.
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Manufacturing Snapshot: The Global Manufacturing Output PMI registered at 53.0 (down 0.5 points), remaining supportive. However, the New Export Orders Index stayed in contraction territory for a fourth month at 49.4, indicating growth was driven by specific high-demand trade corridors rather than a broad-based export boom. “Air cargo demand grew 8.5% year-on-year in June. While North America was the strongest contributor to growth, demand in all regions was in positive territory compared to last year. Demand growth outpaced capacity at the global level and in all regions except Latin America and the Caribbean. Demand also grew faster than global trade, supported by high-value technology products and urgent shipments. While this all gives strong reasons for optimism in the second half of 2026, risks remain—continuing hostilities in the Middle East and a renewed focus on tariffs by the US among them,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
| Region | Demand Growth (CTK) | Capacity Growth (ACTK) | Load Factor (Level) | Key Performance Highlights |
| North America | +13.1% | +6.2% | 40.7% | Strongest overall regional growth, buoyed by heavy transpacific volumes. |
| Asia-Pacific | +7.9% | +4.3% | 51.8% | Solid performance; holds the largest global market share (35.8%). |
| Europe | +6.9% | +3.7% | 50.5% | Steady growth; sustained momentum across Asia corridors. |
| Middle East | +5.6% | +2.5% | 46.5% | Rebounded vs. a weak June 2025, though regional trade corridors remain disrupted. |
| Africa | +4.7% | -7.1% | 48.1% | Significant load factor improvement (+5.4 pts) due to capacity tightening. |
| Latin America & Caribbean | +3.5% | +9.8% | 33.9% | Weakest demand growth; the only region where capacity growth outstripped demand. |
Performance diverged significantly depending on trade corridors, heavily influenced by regional geopolitics and supply chain shifts:
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Asia–North America (+14.7%): Marked its fifth consecutive month of growth, representing nearly a quarter (23.5%) of the total global industry.
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Within Asia (+7.2%): Extended an extraordinary streak to 32 consecutive months of expansion.
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Europe–Asia (+7.1%): Maintained long-term momentum, logging its 40th consecutive month of positive growth.
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Africa–Asia (+0.9%): Achieved a full year (12 consecutive months) of uninterrupted growth.
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Europe–North America (0.0%): Volumes remained flat year-on-year.
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Middle Eastern Corridors: Middle East–Asia down -4.1% and Europe–Middle East down -41.1%, both logging four straight months of contraction due to ongoing regional conflict.
