The Cathay Group has reported another month of solid performance across its passenger and cargo operations, carrying more than 3.2 million passengers in October – a 21% increase on September – while its airfreight arm continued to gain momentum ahead of the year-end peak.
Cathay Cargo handled more than 150,000 tonnes of freight during the month, up 12% month-on-month and 6% higher than in October 2024. Available Freight Tonne Kilometres (AFTKs) rose by 8%. For the first 10 months of 2025, total tonnage was up 10% compared with the same period last year.
Lavinia Lau, Cathay’s Chief Customer and Commercial Officer, said cargo demand strengthened across most markets despite holiday periods in Hong Kong.
“We saw robust demand for our Cathay Fresh solution, driven by fresh produce shipments from Southeast Asia and Oceania into Hong Kong, as well as chilled salmon moving from South America to the Chinese Mainland,” she said.
“Our Cathay Priority product also recorded solid growth out of Southeast Asia and the Greater Bay Area, reflecting continued demand for time-critical shipments ahead of the festive season and year-end sales.”
Lau added that the airline expects healthy loads to continue through the remainder of the cargo peak season, particularly on major trade lanes.
CATHAY CARGO
OCTOBER 2025 % Change vs OCTOBER 2024
Cumulative OCTOBER 2025
% Change YTD
Available Freight Tonne Kilometres (000) 1,380,381 7.8% 12,636,919 8.5%
Revenue Freight Tonne Kilometres (000) 832,006 5.6% 7,378,537 6.5%
Number of freighter flight sectors 1,388 -1.7% 12,739 -2.5%
Cargo carried (000kg) 151,439 6.4% 1,367,079 9.7%
Cargo load factor 60.3% -1.2%pt 58.4% -1.1%pt