African airlines had the weakest performance in August 2023, with a 4.7% decline in cargo volumes compared to August 2022, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Air Cargo Market Analysis released this week.

According to the analysis, for Africa, this was a significant decrease in performance compared to July (+2.3%).

Notably, Africa-Asia routes declined by 1.1% in August following an 11.2% growth in July, while capacity was 3.8% above August 2022 levels.

The released data for August 2023 global air cargo markets, shows that year-on-year air cargo demand grew.

"Air cargo demand grew by 1.5% over the previous August. This is the first year-on-year growth in 19 months, so it is certainly welcome news. But it is of a low 2022 base and market signals are mixed," said Willie Walsh, IATA's Director General in a statement.

According to Walsh, looking ahead, while many uncertainties remain, we can take some optimism from Purchasing Managers Index data moving toward positive territory.

"This is particularly significant as we head into air cargo's traditional peak year-end season," he concluded.