October 2018: Passengers up 4.8% in Asia-Pacific and 4.2% in Middle East

Passenger traffic across Asia-Pacific and the Middle East recorded growth in October at +4.8% and +4.2% respectively.
 
India continued to lead in Asia-Pacific with approximately +9% total passenger growth from last year. The overall India market is showing signs of slowdown but the domestic sector maintained double-digit gain during October at around +11%.  The top three airports with the most total passenger volume growth are: Bangalore (BLR) +24.3%, Hyderabad (HYD) +19.8% and Chennai (MAA) +17.1%.
 
In China, the general pace of growth continued to slow and total passenger traffic growth from last year was approximately +7%. The domestic sector in China experienced a slight uptick possibly benefited from the National Day Golden Week travels. The three airports with the most passenger volume increase from last year: Beijing (PEK) +6.0%, Guangzhou (CAN) +6.3% and Chengdu (CTU) +8.5%.
 
Elsewhere in the region, a number of airports in Australia experienced sizable increase in international passenger traffic, possibly benefited from the timing of various national holidays. Sydney (SYD) and Melbourne (MEL) reported increase of +6.0% and +8.4% in international passenger growth, resulting in overall passenger growth of +3.3% and +2.9% respectively.
 
In the Middle East, many airports posted positive growth rates. Bahrain (BAH) generated the highest growth rate this month at +23%, followed by Muscat (MCT) +14.2% and Beirut (BEY) +11%. Dubai (DXB), the largest hub in the region grew by +2.1%.
 
In terms of air freight, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East grew by +2.6% and +1.8% respectively amid the ongoing trade disputes between China and the United States. Among the major cargo hubs, Delhi (DEL) +19.9% had the highest growth rate, followed by Doha (DOH) +13.1% and Mumbai (BOM) +11.1%.