HKIA passenger traffic down to 6.13m in January

This comes as the Lunar New Year fell on February instead of the first month.

Hong Kong International Airport took off on unsteady footing as passenger throughput fell 0.9% YoY to 6.13m passengers in January, as the much-anticipated Chinese New Year which has historically boosted airline figures, fell on February instead of January this year.

Local resident travel also dipped 8%, dragging the already-weak headline figures whilst passenger traffic to and from Southeast Asia and Taiwan registered the most significant decrease, according to a press release. 

Despite the decrease in passengers, the airport recorded the transport of higher levels of cargo as throughput rose 9.9% YoY to 410,000 tonnes.

On the cargo front, transshipments and imports registered 14% and 10% year-on-year growth, respectively, contributing most to the growth. Amongst the key trading regions, traffic to/from Europe and India increased most significantly in the month.