Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) — the world's busiest cargo hub — ended 2024 on a high note, recording a double-digit increase in cargo volumes for the year, mainly driven by strong exports.

Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) said during the year, HKIA handled total cargo throughput of 4.9 million tonnes, representing an annual growth of 14.0%.

Flight movements during the period totalled 363,305, up 31.6% year-on-year.

Cargo throughput in December increased by 6.6% year on year to 446,000 tonnes, with a 6.8% increase in exports. 

However, this is lower than the 458,000 tonnes of cargo recorded in November.

AAHK said traffic to and from key trading regions in Europe, the Middle East and Australasia saw the most substantial increases.

"The increase in cargo traffic in 2024 was mainly attributed to exports, which was up 20.2% compared with 2023, and the most significant increases were recorded in traffic to and from key trading regions in Europe, North America and the Middle East," the announcement said.

Vivian Cheung, acting chief executive officer of AAHK, said 2024 was a "fruitful and rewarding year for HKIA."

"We commissioned the Three-runway System in November, on time and within budget, and was crowned the world’s busiest cargo airport for the 13th time since 2010. We had a busy Christmas period and are preparing for another peak during the Chinese New Year holidays as we see airlines adding a significant number of flights to meet the high demand," she said.

Meanwhile, HKIA also further expanded its air traffic network with several new destinations and flight routes added in January 2025. HK Express launched a new flight route to Sendai, while Hong Kong Airlines resumed direct flights to Vancouver and Gold Coast. Shenzhen Airlines launched a new service to Nanjing, while a new passenger airline, Air Premia, is starting to operate flights between Hong Kong and Seoul.

AAHK noted that in terms of passenger numbers, the airport saw robust growth in 2024 as it entered a new era of three-runway operation, with flight movements in December rising year-on-year by 12.5% to 33,550.

"It was close to pre-pandemic level, with individual daily flight movements exceeding pre-pandemic level, setting a new record high," Cheung said.