Cathay Pacific maintained the growth momentum of its air freight business, recording a double-digit freight growth in March.

The Hong Kong flag carrier transported 134,551 tonnes of cargo in March 2024, an increase of 10.5% compared with March 2023.

This figure is also higher than the 107,039 tonnes of cargo carried in February 2024.

For March, cargo revenue tonne kilometres (RFTKs) increased 4.1% year on year. The cargo load factor decreased by 4.3 percentage points to 62.7%, while available cargo tonne kilometres (AFTKs) increased by 11.2% year on year.

Cathay said that in the first three months of 2024, the tonnage increased by 11.1% to a total of 356,380 tonnes, against a 15.2% increase in AFTKs and a 6.2% increase in RFTKs, compared with the same period in 2023.

"Cargo demand was stronger in March, with our tonnage up by 26% compared with the previous month and up by 11% compared to March 2023," said Lavinia Lau, chief customer and commercial officer at Cathay Pacific.

"Cargo demand out of Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland picked up quickly after factories re-opened following the Chinese New Year holidays, and we observed an increase in e-commerce and express shipments due to the end-of-quarter rush," she added.

E-commerce seen to drive air cargo growth

Looking ahead, Cathay anticipates air cargo growth to continue to pick-up on the back of increasing e-commerce demand.

"In terms of cargo, we expect e-commerce demand to remain strong and for overall air cargo demand to be stable on long-haul routes," Lau said.

"As the largest cargo operator at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), we also congratulate HKIA on once again being named the world's busiest cargo airport in 2023 — a status it has held for 13 of the past 14 years. We are extremely proud to be part of this incredible success story and remain committed to continuing to work together with all stakeholders to further grow Hong Kong as the world’s leading air cargo hub," she added.