IATA further notes that freight volumes now have now broadly tracked sideways in seasonally adjusted terms over the past six months.
The best of the upturn in air freight demand has now been passed, it says, according to current data. IATA declares that it is important to note that the wider momentum in world trade also looks to be slowing down in the face of a pick-up in protectionist measures. Strong consumer confidence and bottlenecks in global supply chains, it feels, should continue to lend support to air freight demand in the near term. That said, recent business surveys are pointing to annual FTK growth slowing even further as the sector heads into the third quarter of 2018.
When surveyed in early April, airline chief cargo executives were positive about the outlook for freight volumes over the year ahead, albeit slightly less than they were in the previous survey. However, respondents remained positive about the outlook for cargo yields.
Overall, the upward trend in cargo yields has moderated since the start of the year. However, it is felt that the ongoing increase in daily freighter aircraft utilisation should help to reduce average costs and to partly offset the impact of rising fuel prices.