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Global air cargo demand grew 6% year-on-year in May 2026, with international operations up 6.5%, according to new data from the International Air Transport Association
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Africa led all regions with 13.3% growth, while North America posted 10.5% — but Middle East carriers saw an 8.9% contraction as war-related disruptions persisted
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The Asia-North America trade lane surged 19.9% year-on-year, leading all major corridors for the fourth consecutive month
Global air cargo demand climbed 6.0% year-on-year in May 2026, with international operations rising 6.5%, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said in a statement. Capacity, measured in available cargo tonne-kilometers (ACTK), grew at a more modest 1.9% — or 2.8% for international operations — pushing the overall cargo load factor to 46.3%, up 1.8 percentage points from a year ago.
The result marks a significant acceleration from the 4.0% growth recorded in April, when Gulf hub disruptions continued to squeeze capacity. May’s rebound was broad-based, with most major regions reporting above-trend gains.
IATA Director General Willie Walsh said the performance reflected a mix of resilience and ongoing uncertainty. Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America all posted above-trend growth, while Middle East carriers reported a combined contraction of 8.9% year-on-year as war-related impacts continued.
“May’s strong performance coupled with macro-economic factors give cautious optimism for air cargo’s prospects over the remainder of the year. Trade and manufacturing output are both growing. Airlines have adapted operations to align with shifting demand patterns and supply chain needs. Meanwhile, yield growth and higher load factors are helping to recoup higher fuel costs. It’s still a tough year, particularly as Middle East uncertainties weigh heavily on parts of the industry, but robust demand and airline resilience are clear,” Walsh said.
African airlines posted the strongest regional performance, with demand up 13.3% year-on-year, against capacity growth of just 1.3%. North American carriers were close behind at 10.5% demand growth, with capacity rising 2.4%. Asia-Pacific airlines saw 8.0% demand growth as capacity expanded 5.1%. European carriers recorded 6.7% demand growth with capacity up 2.2%.
Latin American and Caribbean carriers posted more modest gains of 1.9%, while capacity there grew 5.6%, resulting in a 1.2 percentage-point decline in load factor.
The Middle East remained the outlier, with carriers in the region recording an 8.9% year-on-year decrease in demand and a 9.2% drop in capacity — the weakest performance of all regions.
In contrast, Gulf-linked corridors remained deeply disrupted. Europe-Middle East fell 19.8% for its third straight month of contraction, and Middle East-Asia dropped 16.5%, also in its third consecutive month of decline.
READ: Air cargo movement in the Gulf resumes, but limited & volatile
On the broader economic backdrop, global trade grew 5.0% year-on-year in May, extending 25 consecutive months of annual growth. Jet fuel prices fell 16.3% month-on-month in May but remained 93.5% above year-earlier levels, continuing to pressure airline costs.
Global manufacturing activity remained supportive, with the Manufacturing Output Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rising to 53.5. However, the New Export Orders Index stayed below the 50-mark at 49.6, suggesting that air cargo growth in the month was driven by selective trade flows rather than a broad-based rise in global exports.
