Cathay Pacific's cargo business maintained its growth trajectory in August, driven by continued e-commerce demand and special solutions catering to animal and pharmaceutical transport.

The Hong Kong flag carrier handled 124,236 tonnes of cargo last month, an increase of 6.3% year-on-year.

However, the volume was smaller than the 126,797 tonnes of cargo in July, which was an increase of 9.6% compared with July 2023.

Cathay transported 124,568 tonnes of cargo in June, 121,088 tonnes in May and 117,428 tonnes of cargo handled in April.

"Cargo demand remained stable in August, continuing the trend of the past months, with tonnage 6% above August last year. We observed an uptick in demand towards the end of the month, in line with expectations as we look ahead to the traditional year-end peak," said said Lavinia Lau, chief customer and commercial officer.

"In terms of our special solutions, Cathay Live Animal benefitted from exports from Southeast Asia and North America, while Cathay Pharma saw increased exports from the United States. From the Greater Bay Area, e-commerce shipments continued to be the key driver of export tonnage," she added.

For August, cargo revenue tonne kilometres (RFTKs) decreased 0.9% year on year. The cargo load factor decreased by 1.7 percentage points to 57.1%, while available cargo tonne kilometres (AFTKs) increased by 2.1% year on year.

Cathay said that in the first eight months of 2024, the tonnage increased by 9.8% to a total of 970,498 tonnes, against an 8.8% increase in AFTKs and a 3.2% increase in RFTKs, compared with the same period in 2023.

Robust air cargo peak, rise in high-tech goods

“For cargo, we expect demand will be robust as we move into the traditional peak season from the second half of September," Lau said, noting that five additional flights per week to North America will be operated.

"While e-commerce tonnage will continue to rise, we also foresee an increase in tonnage of high-tech and electronic goods from the Chinese Mainland, Southeast Asia and India."

Lau noted that Cathay is also looking forward to welcoming the arrival of the two giant pandas gifted to the Hong Kong SAR by the Central Government — both will be shipped by Cathay Cargo.

"We are also delighted to share that as per the latest IATA 2023 World Air Transport Statistics, Cathay Pacific regained its position in the Top 10 cargo carriers based on scheduled cargo tonne-kilometres and achieved fifth position as a combination airline," Cathay's chief customer and commercial officer further said.

"This attested to our continuous commitment to maintaining and growing Hong Kong as the world's number one air cargo hub," Lau added.