The latest data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reveals that African airlines recorded the slowest growth in the global air cargo market in October 2024. With only a 2% market share, the region's air cargo demand lagged behind other regions, highlighting challenges in fully utilizing available resources.

The IATA's latest analysis covers the global and regional air cargo market based on year-on-year comparative traffic and capacity during October 2024 versus October 2023. The report shows that African carriers accounted for only 2% of the global air cargo market, with a 1.6% year-on-year increase in air cargo demand for October 2024, the slowest growth among all regions. Capacity, however, rose by 7.7%.

In contrast, Asia-Pacific airlines saw a 13.4% year-on-year demand growth for air cargo in October, with capacity increasing by 9.3%. North American carriers saw 9.5% year-on-year demand growth, while European carriers saw 7.6% year-on-year demand growth. Middle Eastern carriers saw 4.5% year-on-year demand growth, and Latin American carriers saw 18.5% year-on-year demand growth, the strongest growth among the regions.

The reasons for the increased trade route figures have been tied to the rising e-commerce demand in the US and Europe amid ongoing capacity limits in ocean shipping. This has led to a surge in air cargo demand, with Asia-Pacific and North American carriers being the largest contributors to the industry's annual cargo tonne-kilometers (CTK) growth, contributing 46.1% and 26%, respectively.

According to World Air Cargo market data, outbound air cargo increased by 8% in H1 2024 compared to H1 2023. The air cargo outbound growth further increased by 9% three months later in September 2024 compared to September 2023. The North Africa and Southern Africa regions accounted for a significant part of this outbound growth, with air cargo traffic from these subregions increasing by 23% and 20%, respectively.

The IATA data highlights the challenges faced by African airlines in fully utilizing available resources, despite expanding cargo capacity. This slow growth in the air cargo market could have significant implications for the region's economy and trade.

The global air cargo market is expected to continue growing, driven by rising e-commerce demand and capacity limits in ocean shipping. However, African airlines will need to address the challenges they face in order to capitalize on this growth and increase their market share.

In conclusion, the IATA's latest report highlights the slow growth of African airlines in the global air cargo market, with only a 2% market share. The region's air cargo demand lagged behind other regions, and African carriers will need to address the challenges they face in order to fully utilize available resources and increase their market share.