LATIN AMERICA
LAC on track
The Latin American and Caribbean Air
Transport Association (ALTA) brings an
update on the cargo sector in the region.
Latin America represents 2.6% of the global air cargo market,
moving approximately 6bn freight tonne kilometres
annually, utilising a regional fleet of more than 160 cargo
aircraft, according to Luis Felipe de Oliveira, Executive Director
& CEO of ALTA. Representing around 8% of the global market
in terms of passengers, the region has plenty of potential for
growth in this area, too, particularly as the low cost model
continues its development in the region – but growth is not
without its obstacles.
Speaking volumes
FTKs flown by Latin American airlines in the domestic market
were up 2.7% year-on-year in May according to IATA, although
international FTKs have returned to negative growth after three
consecutive months of growth, currently sitting at 0.5% below
their May 2018 level.
Despite this, Latin America, along with Africa, is contributing
positively to industry-wide, year-on-year FTK growth, which
remains in negative territory but was beginning to show modest
signs of improvement in May.
According to CEPAL data, by volume about 0.2% of the total
cargo is transported by air
within the region; but this
figure rises to 7% in terms of
value. In mature markets such
as the US, these percentages
reach as high as 35%,
according to data from ATAG.
Trading expectations
Air cargo is susceptible to
the effect of global economic
crises and continues to face
major challenges, such as the
fall in world trade volumes,
the slowdown in the global
economy and the weakening
of consumer confidence.
The fall in global trade
is largely attributable to the
ongoing US-China trade war.
The country most affected
by US tariffs on steel and
aluminium exports in Latin
America is Mexico, followed by
Brazil and Argentina.
ALTA’s CEO reinforces
that the LAC cargo market is
expected to grow, however,
because of factors such
as the strong demand for
manufactured exports and
the greater penetration of
advanced technologies in
the value chain. It is also
expected that global growth
in the e-commerce sector
will reinforce future growth
prospects.
“The progress of electronic
commerce has put greater
pressure on sales channels
to speed up deliveries and
optimise supply chains.
Because of the continuous
growth in online purchases,
the air cargo service has
become a critical means of
transportation and the growth
of e-commerce in the future
will increase the demand on
the air cargo industry, which
is an important business
opportunity for the airlines,”
asserts de Oliveira.
Top 10 Latin American cargo airports (in tonnes)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
BOG 741,501
MEX 581,700
GRU 561,522
SCL 378,857
LIM 285,636
VCP 275,231
UIO 210,000
EZE 205,597
PTY 175,000
GDL 164,242
www.airlogisticsinternational.com August 2019 15
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