The sharp downturn in world trade also reflected in global air traffic, as it dropped sharply in September, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said.
A statement issued by the Geneva-based agency Friday depicted a sign of the deepening crisis in the industry. According to it, passenger traffic declined 2.9 percent and cargo traffic dropped 7.7 percent when compared to the corresponding period last year.
International load factors also showed a decline of 4.4 percentage points from August, it added.
Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director general and CEO, expressed concern over the " alarmingly fast-paced and widespread" deterioration in passenger traffic. This reminds of the situation during the SARS crisis in 2003, he pointed out.
He said the dwindling of oil price from its July peak could not offset the impact of the drop in demand.
IATA, which represents about 230 airlines from around the world, had forecast industry losses of $5.2 billion this year.
Bisignani indicated that losses might be even more than the previous forecast, considering the situation last month.
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May 08, 2026 15:50 ET Manufacturing and services sector survey results and labor market data from main economies were the highlight on the economics news front this week. Factory orders and jobs report dominated the news flow in the U.S. Similarly, industrial production data from German garnered attention in Europe. In Asia, purchasing managers’ survey results from China and the central bank decision from Australia were in focus.