A 2.3% volume increase has been reported by Schiphol Cargo in belly cargo figures, with China and the US remaining the strongest markets., while an extension of the network also led to growth in Latin America.

Overall freight volume has decreased by 2.7% to 843,832 tonnes compared with 2017, due to a 9.4% decrease in full freighter air transport movements (ATMs) and the ongoing restrictions on slot availability.

“The mid-year figures reflect our expectations for a decrease in overall freighter ATMs as we continue to face capacity constraints,” said Maaike van der Windt, Director Aviation Marketing, Cargo and Customer Experience (ACC). “However, the increase in belly volume is a positive development for Schiphol Cargo due to a slight growth in passenger flights since last year, and an expanded network across Latin America.”

Due to the continued increase in e-commerce in China, Shanghai remains the company’s main destination, reaching more than 31,000 tonnes in the first six months of this year, followed by the US with more than 22,000 tonnes. Despite this increase however, the Asian inbound market was down by 2% to 147,122 tonnes, while the outbound decreased by 3% to 150,623 tonnes.

Moreover, European figures show a 7% inbound decline to 55,821 tonnes and a 4% outbound decline to 59,452. The North American market saw an 11% inbound downfall to 64,768 tonnes and a decrease in outbound cargo of 4% to 79,055 tonnes.

Meanwhile, the Latin American market shows positive growth due to a network extension on the continent with inbound cargo up 9% to 65,255 tonnes and a 15% increase in outbound cargo to 40,445 tonnes. The African markets also showed positive outbound results with a 7% increase in cargo to 26,674 tonnes, while inbound cargo decreased by 5% to 56,733 tonnes.

Lastly, the Middle Eastern region went down by 2% in inbound and 11% in outbound to 42,666 and 55,218 tonnes respectively.