[asset_ref id=”384″]
A sharp downturn in the air cargo market in November meant that British Airways World Cargo saw volumes fall 8.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2008.
Managing director Steve Gunning (pictured) said: “The turndown in market conditions since November has been unprecedented and we have yet to see it level out. The situation is exacerbated by the ongoing imbalance of available capacity and market demand. The need to protect customer service while achieving productivity improvements and cost savings has never been greater.”
“The 8.4 per cent decline in volume reflects the reality that there was no visible pre-Christmas peak and the downward trend in price as a result of excess capacity continues to be a feature in all of our key markets,” said financial controller Sean Doyle.
The third quarter decline offset a strong performance in the preceding six months and meant that cargo volumes fell 1.6 per cent to 3,603 million tonne kilometres for the nine months to December 2008.
BAWC cut cargo capacity for the nine month period by 3.6 per cent. This meant that overall yield (excluding the impact of exchange rate movements) increased by 14 per cent.
