Air Freight Market Update
April 2025
What’s shaping Air Freight in 2025? Explore how early 2025 dynamics are impacting global Air Cargo.
Global Air Cargo Update
Global Air Cargo Demand
- Trade tensions, particularly between the U.S. and China, led to a surge in air freight as companies sought to bypass impending tariffs.
- Major volumes in Q1’25 were contributed by Asia Pacific (China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Japan). Key trade routes with significant growth YoY Q1’25, Europe-Americas at 9%, Asia Pacific-Americas at 3%, and Intra-Asia Pacific at 11%.
Global Air Cargo Capacity
- Forecasted capacity increases vs. demand growth is slightly lagging, indicating a 3-4% rise in capacity vs. a 4-6% increase in demand.
- Capacity growth remains moderate due to various factors affecting carriers, companies, and forwarders due to uncertainty in tariffs and trade policies, e-commerce volatility, and ongoing supply chain constraints.
Regulation/News
- From April 1, 2025, Canada began enforcing the Pre-Load Air Cargo Targeting (PACT) program, requiring pre-loading risk assessments for shipments entering the country. This initiative aims to enhance air cargo security by identifying high-risk shipments before they are loaded onto aircraft.
- Conflicts in the Red Sea and Ukraine continue to impact the airfreight market.
Get Logistics Insights by Email
Subscribe to our monthly market updates and get invited to exclusive webinars where our Freight Forwarding Experts answer all your questions on global trade.
Regional Air Freight News
Europe
- Major European cargo airports (BRU, AMS, LGG) and airlines expanded their handling capacities to manage rising cargo volumes and prevent congestion.
- Labor strikes recently disrupted European air freight, notably on March 31 when a nationwide strike in Belgium halted departing flights at Brussels (BRU), a major pharma hub and Charleroi (CRL), alongside similar disruptions in Germany.
Asia
- The challenge remains for airlines, forwarders, and shippers to plan i.e. shippers rerouting from high tariff to lower tariff countries, re-directing products for production and distribution hubs, and airlines re-aligning capacity to trade lanes where demand is strong.
- Shift in trade flows will result in higher volume from China to Europe/Latin America and Southeast Asia/ India to the USA.
Middle East and Africa
- To accommodate demand, carriers have started operating ad-hoc freighter flights within the region, increasing overall available capacity.
- Ongoing global economic volatility has driven higher demand for gold and silver transport. Meanwhile, spot rates from the UAE to Europe are falling as carriers offer more available space.
Americas
- With ongoing trade talks between the US and many countries, it's unclear how the tariffs will develop in the near or long term, and it is subsequently hard to predict the respective impact on trade.
- Mexico's mango season is causing higher airfreight volumes and greater demand for temperature-controlled shipping. Meanwhile, rising temperatures in Mexico are introducing flight delays and risks, especially for perishable cargo that requires quick, stable transportation.
Want to Read More Freight Forwarding Stories?
Get the latest on Air, Ocean and Rail Freight Forwarding in your inbox every month, along with regular invitations to our webinars.
