Air cargo market performance is reported through four measures. Demand, expressed as cargo tonne-kilometres. Capacity, expressed as available cargo tonne-kilometres. Load factor, which is the share of capacity actually used. And yield, which is the revenue earned per unit of cargo carried.
Every monthly market report and rate commentary in the industry is built on those four. Read together they explain whether rates are likely to rise or fall, because rates follow the balance between how much cargo needs moving and how much space exists to move it.
This page explains what each measure means, where the figures come from and when they publish, and carries the latest available data.
What Do the Air Cargo Market Metrics Mean?
The four headline metrics measure demand, capacity, utilisation and price, and each one answers a different question about the state of the market.
| Metric | What it stands for | What it measures | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|---|
| CTK | Cargo tonne-kilometres | Actual cargo carried, one tonne moved one kilometre | How much demand there is |
| ACTK | Available cargo tonne-kilometres | Total cargo capacity offered, whether used or not | How much space exists |
| CLF | Cargo load factor | CTK divided by ACTK, as a percentage | How full the market is running |
| Yield | Revenue per cargo tonne-kilometre | What carriers earn per unit carried | Which direction pricing is moving |
Tonne-kilometres rather than tonnes matters, because distance is part of the work. Moving one tonne from Hong Kong to Frankfurt is a far larger piece of capacity than moving one tonne from Hong Kong to Taipei, and a measure counting only tonnes would treat them as identical.
How Do You Read These Figures Together?
The relationship between demand growth and capacity growth sets the direction of rates, and the load factor shows how tight the market already is.
Four combinations cover most situations.
- Demand growing faster than capacity. Load factor rises, the market tightens, and rates move up
- Capacity growing faster than demand. Load factor falls, space is easy to find, and rates soften
- Both growing at similar rates. Load factor holds, and rates tend to track fuel costs rather than market balance
- Capacity contracting while demand grows. The sharpest tightening, and the condition that produces rate spikes
Watch the gap between the two percentages rather than either one on its own. Demand up 4 percent sounds modest until capacity is down 1 percent over the same period, at which point the market is tightening meaningfully.
What Is a Normal Cargo Load Factor?
Global cargo load factor typically runs in the mid-forties as a percentage, which looks low until you understand what is being measured.
A load factor of 46 percent does not mean aircraft are flying half empty. Much of the world’s air cargo travels in the holds of passenger aircraft, and that capacity exists whether or not there is cargo to fill it, on routes dictated by passenger demand rather than freight demand. A large share of theoretical capacity therefore sits on lanes and at times when nobody wants to ship anything.
Regional load factors vary considerably. European carriers typically run the highest of the major regions, while Latin America runs the lowest. The gap reflects network structure and trade balance rather than how well each region sells its capacity.
Where Does Air Cargo Market Data Come From?
Market data comes from several organisations, each measuring something different, and knowing which produced a figure matters as much as the figure itself.
| Source | What it publishes | Frequency | Typical release |
|---|---|---|---|
| IATA | Demand, capacity, load factor and yield commentary, globally and by carrier region | Monthly | Around the 29th of the following month |
| WorldACD | Volumes, rates and load factors from actual transaction data across city pairs | Weekly | Thursday, covering the previous week |
| TAC Index and the Baltic Air Freight Index | Transaction rates from forwarders, with sub-indices by origin | Weekly | Weekly |
| Freightos Air Index | Global and lane-level rates from its own platform data | Weekly | Weekly |
| Drewry | All-in buy rates on major East-West routes above 1,000 kg | Monthly | Monthly |
IATA measures the volume of cargo moving. The index providers measure what it costs to move. Both are needed, because demand data explains why rates are moving and rate data shows how far they have moved.
The differences between rate indices are substantial and come down to methodology. That is covered in the guide to air freight rates.
Latest Air Cargo Market Data
Reporting period, August 2026. Published by IATA on 29 September 2026.
| Measure | August 2026, year on year |
|---|---|
| Global demand, CTK | Up 4.4 percent |
| Global capacity, ACTK | Down 0.1 percent |
| Cargo load factor | 46.0 percent, up 2.0 percentage points |
| Yields | Rising month on month for the first time since April 2026 |
What the figures show
Demand grew while capacity contracted slightly, which is the combination that tightens a market. The 2.0 percentage point rise in load factor reflects that gap, and the return to month on month yield growth after several flat months follows from it.
All regions reported demand growth in the month. The Asia to North America corridor led the trade lanes, while Gulf-linked routes continued to contract. European carriers held the highest regional load factor, and North American carriers achieved their growth while reducing capacity, which lifted their load factor sharply.
Regional cargo volume shares
Asia-Pacific accounts for roughly 36 percent of global cargo traffic, North America around 25 percent, Europe around 21 percent, the Middle East around 13 percent, with Latin America and the Caribbean and Africa making up the remainder.
How Has the Market Moved Through 2026?
Global air cargo demand has grown through most of 2026, with one contraction caused by regional disruption rather than by underlying weakness.
| Month, 2026 | Global demand growth, CTK year on year |
|---|---|
| January | Up 5.6 percent |
| February | Up 11.2 percent |
| March | Down 4.8 percent |
| May | Up 6.0 percent |
| June | Up 8.5 percent |
| July | Up 3.9 percent |
| August | Up 4.4 percent |
February’s figure reflects pre-Lunar New Year shipping, which produces a seasonal peak every year and should not be read as a trend. March’s contraction followed disruption to Gulf-linked traffic. The underlying pattern across the year is steady growth with capacity lagging behind it, which is why load factors have improved.
What Moves Air Cargo Rates?
Rates respond to the balance between demand and capacity on specific lanes, and to jet fuel costs feeding through the fuel surcharge.
The recurring drivers are:
- Belly capacity, which follows passenger schedules rather than cargo demand, so it expands and contracts for reasons unrelated to freight
- Freighter capacity, slower to adjust and dependent on fleet availability
- Seasonal peaks, particularly before Lunar New Year and ahead of the end of year retail season
- Trade lane disruption, including airspace closures, conflict and port congestion pushing cargo from sea to air
- Fuel prices, which feed directly into surcharges rather than into the base rate
- Commodity mix, since pharmaceutical and other specialised cargo commands a premium over general freight
Rates are also directional. The same lane can be tight eastbound and soft westbound, because trade flows are unbalanced while aircraft have to return regardless.
Questions About Air Cargo Market Data
What does CTK mean in air cargo?
CTK stands for cargo tonne-kilometres and measures actual demand. One CTK is one tonne of cargo carried one kilometre, so the measure accounts for distance as well as weight.
What does ACTK mean?
ACTK stands for available cargo tonne-kilometres and measures capacity. It is the total cargo space offered, whether or not it was used, expressed in the same tonne-kilometre terms as demand.
What is the cargo load factor?
Cargo load factor is demand divided by capacity, expressed as a percentage, showing how much of the available space was actually used. It typically runs in the mid-forties globally, because much of the capacity sits in passenger aircraft holds on routes set by passenger demand.
Why is the cargo load factor so low compared with passenger load factors?
Because a large share of cargo capacity exists as a by-product of passenger flying. That space is available whether or not cargo wants it, on routes and at times chosen for passengers, so a substantial amount of theoretical capacity is never usable for freight.
When does IATA publish air cargo data?
IATA publishes its Air Cargo Market Analysis monthly, around the 29th of the month following the reporting period. August data was released on 29 September.
Where can I find current air cargo rates?
Weekly rate data comes from the Baltic Air Freight Index, the Freightos Air Index and WorldACD, with monthly figures from Drewry. Each uses a different methodology, so check what an index measures before comparing figures.
Does rising demand always mean rising rates?
No. Rates depend on the gap between demand growth and capacity growth. Demand can rise while rates soften if capacity is growing faster, and rates can rise on modest demand growth if capacity is contracting.
