Airports Council International (ACI) World has published the latest ACI World Airport Traffic Dataset, confirming, among others, the top 20 busiest cargo hubs in the world in 2023.

In its new data, ACI World confirmed that Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) retained its title as the world's busiest cargo airport in 2023.

The airport has been the consistent top cargo hub for 13 years, although it dropped to second in 2020 due to the wide-ranging impacts of Covid-19.

The global trade representative of the world's airport authorities said HKG remained the world's busiest air cargo hub in 2023, recording 4.33 million metric tonnes of cargo last year, up 3.2% from the 4.2 million metric tonnes in 2022.

2023's figures are, however, still down by 10% from the pre-pandemic volume at HKG.

[Source: ACI World] 

"Air cargo has decreased slightly year over year, but it is important to remember that the sector is recalibrating from the historic highs of the past few years," said Luis Felipe de Oliveira, director general of ACI World.

"Cargo traffic is concentrated in the hub airports, and Hong Kong retains its top spot," he added.

ACI noted that air cargo volumes in the top 20 airports represented around 42% (47.9 million tonnes) of the global volumes in 2023.

It dropped 3.2% in 2023 year over year but maintained a gain of 1.6% vs. 47.1 million tonnes, compared to the same period in 2019.

"The decline can be attributed to the ongoing geopolitical tensions and disruptions to global trade and supply chains," the announcement said.

Hong Kong remained in the top spot, followed by Memphis, Shanghai Pudong, Anchorage Airport, and Incheon International Airport.

Rounding the top 10 busiest air cargo airports list are Louisville International Airport —the primary hub of UPS Airlines, Miami International Airport, Doha International Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, and Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.

ACI World collects airport traffic every year through its global network of airport operator members, investors, and aviation stakeholders.

The dataset reveals airport passenger, cargo, and aircraft movement rankings for over 2,700 airports across more than 185 countries and territories.