Double-digit Traffic Growth Recorded in September

(HONG KONG, 17 October 2010) – Air traffic at Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) continued to perform well in September, with passenger throughput surging 16.9% to 4.1 million and cargo volume going up 13.9% to 346,000 tonnes. Aircraft movements also recorded a double-digit increase of 15.9%, totalling 26,140.

Last month saw traffic generated by Hong Kong residents and visitors rising by 19% and 17% respectively compared to the same period last year. All key regions registered year-on-year growth, with the Chinese Mainland and South East Asia remaining the best performers. Transfer/transit passengers also showed a yearly increase of 15% during the month.

On the cargo front, the increment in tonnage volume was led by robust exports, which surged 18% year-on-year. Major consumption markets in North America and Europe continued their momentum with double-digit year-on-year growth. During the month, imports grew 9% while transshipments were up 10%.

From July to September, the airport handled a total of 13.5 million passengers. This represented a yearly increase of 14.3%, a steady improvement from second quarter's 11.8% and first quarter's 6.6% rise, indicating a vigorous growth momentum in the passenger market. The third-quarter flight movement growth at 15% also outstripped that of the previous two quarters, while the increase in cargo tonnage narrowed down but maintained a healthy rate of 18.4%.

Stanley Hui Hon-chung, Chief Executive Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong, anticipated that air traffic would continue to rise in the foreseeable future. He cited, "During the 1-7 October National Day Golden Week this year, we handled around 924,000 passengers, 75,000 tonnes of cargo and 6,000 flight movements, representing increases of 10.7%, 20.7% and 13.2% from the corresponding period last year."

For the first nine months of 2010, the airport's passenger volume amounted to 38 million, up 10.9% compared to the same period last year. Cargo throughput jumped 28.7% to 3 million tonnes and air traffic movements went up 8.2% to 224,890.

"If everything goes well, we are confident that HKIA will achieve record volumes in both passenger and cargo throughput this year, strengthening HKIA's position as a leading international and regional aviation centre," Mr Hui highlighted.

Breakdown of air traffic performance in 2010