RIYADH: Air freight volumes in the Middle East and South Asia fell 6 percent week on week in the first full week of August, the steepest regional decline, as global air cargo volumes dropped 4 percent, according to the latest WorldACD Weekly Air Cargo Trends report.
The decline outpaced the 4 percent drops recorded in both Europe and North America, while Asia-Pacific fell 3 percent and Africa and Central and South America each declined 2 percent.
The Iran-related conflict that erupted in late February 2026 severely disrupted Middle East aviation in the first half of the year through widespread airspace closures, higher fuel costs from longer detours, and supply-chain shocks.
Combined with reduced capacity and weaker demand, this pushed Middle Eastern airlines toward a projected collective net loss of $4.3 billion for full-year 2026 after a $7.2 billion profit in 2025, the International Air Transport Association said in June.
Reflecting on the latest figures, WorldACD said it its report: “Global airfreight volumes declined in the first full week of August after a mild rally the previous week, with chargeable weight sinking from all origins, while pricing and capacity inched lower, barely changing from the previous week.”
Trade lanes
According to the WorldACD report, Middle East and South Asia traffic to Europe dropped 11 percent week on week, with chargeable weight declining in the mid-to-high single digits from most origins across the region.
Sri Lanka stood out as the sole exception in the region, with exports to Europe rising 15 percent.
On a year-on-year basis, traffic in the Middle and South Asia-Europe lane was down 13 percent, due to declines of 62 percent from Dubai and 4 percent from India.
Middle East and South Asia shipments to the US eased just 1 percent week on week. Declines of 23 percent from Colombo and 8 percent from India were partly offset by solid gains from Dubai of 37 percent and from Bangladesh of 15 percent.
Pricing retreats in stable capacity environment
Global airfreight capacity sank 1 percent week on week on a 1 percent contraction out of Asia Pacific, Middle East and South Asia and North America.
Driven largely by lower fuel costs, global airfreight rates have eased in recent weeks, falling from an average of $3 in week 29.
Rates from the Middle East and South Asia region slipped 1 percent week on week, though year-on-year pricing remained the strongest globally at an increase of 48 percent.
In July, a report by the IATA revealed that international cargo traffic on Middle Eastern airlines jumped 5.6 percent year on year, a 14.5-percentage-point turnaround from May, reflecting the gradual restoration of transfer traffic through the region’s hub airports.
On the passenger side, IATA added that traffic carried by Middle Eastern carriers fell 13.9 percent year on year, a marked improvement from the 28.8 percent decline recorded a month earlier.
