HKIA sets monthly cargo record in November

Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) recorded increases in all three traffic categories in November 2012, including a monthly record high for cargo traffic. During the month, cargo throughput saw strong growth of 9.3% over the same period last year to 374,000 tonnes to beat the previous record set in October 2010. Passenger traffic and flight movements also saw year-on-year growth of 5.5% and 6.6% respectively, with 4.6 million passengers and 29,710 flight movements handled.

The growth in passenger traffic was driven mainly by Hong Kong resident travel, which saw a 12% rise over the same month last year. Passenger traffic to and from South East Asia and Mainland China performed particularly well. Growth in November cargo throughput was primarily due to 11% year-on-year growth in exports. During the month, cargo throughput to and from North America and South East Asia outperformed other key regions.

Stanley Hui Hon-chung, Chief Executive Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong, said, “We are pleased to see very healthy growth in all traffic figures, especially the sustained rebound of cargo volume for four consecutive months despite a consistently challenging global economic environment. We remain cautiously optimistic about the potential for cargo throughput, and we foresee this positive trend continuing at HKIA.

“We are shortly approaching the festive Christmas and New Year holidays. To cater for the seasonal surge in demand, a total of 250 extra passenger flights will be added by the airlines. Popular destinations include Taipei, Seoul and South East Asia. During the upcoming holiday seasons, apart from working closely with the aviation community in ensuring a smooth, safe and efficient operation of the increasing number of flights, we plan to delight our passengers with a range of festive activities in the terminals, including ballet shows, a choir performance, orchestra, ensemble performances, handicraft workshops and more,” Mr Hui added.

Over the first 11 months of this year, passenger traffic climbed 4.8% to 51.5 million while cargo volume grew by 1.7% to 3.7 million tonnes. Flight movements rose to 320,860, a 5.4% increase compared with the same period last year.

On a rolling 12-month basis, flight movements registered a year-on-year increase of 5.4%, amounting to 350,155 movements. Passenger traffic rose 5.1% to 56.3 million, while cargo tonnage registered a 1.1% increase to 4 million.

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