Global premium air traffic volume rose 1.7 percent year over
year in December, marking slow corporate demand growth at the end of 2015, the
International Air Transport Association reported.
For the full-year 2015, premium traffic volume rose 3.7
percent, but much of that growth occurred at the beginning of the year,
according to IATA. Uneven global economic growth, slow world trade growth and
tougher times in sectors that use premium cabins like banking, mining and
energy contributed to the slowdown later in the year. Those factors are unlikely
to change in the short term, so premium-traffic growth will be modest in the
coming months, the association reported.
Growth of premium traffic on North Atlantic routes was above
the global average, up 2.4 percent year over year in December and 4.5 percent
for the full year. The routes were "supported by solid economic growth in
the U.S. and a modest cyclical upturn in Europe," according to IATA.
Premium-traffic growth was sluggish or down in 2015 on many
Asia routes, except transpacific ones, where exposure to the U.S. economy supported
volume. December premium traffic between Europe and Asia was down 2.6 percent
year over.
However, even as growth of premium traffic lags
growth of economy traffic, premium fares are not declining, IATA reported.