Declining Demand Reflects in Air France KLM’s Q2 Revenue Decrease

Soft demand and lower rates accounted for Air France KLM Martinair Cargo’s (AFKLMP) revenues dropping by over a third in the second quarter.

Total cargo revenues dropped by 33.9% in the second quarter year on year, said Air France-KLM Group.

Capacity was up 6.5% for the quarter, traffic was down 8.5% and the load factor was down 7.3 percentage points.

“Total revenues dropped by 33.9% compared to last year. The resumption of the passenger travel resulted in an increase in Available Ton Kilometers of 6.5% versus the second quarter of 2022,” said the Group.

“Last year, the second quarter still showed a strong demand and therefore the traffic decreased year over year by 8.5%. As global economic growth is slowing down, container prices for seafreight
declined and therefore demand for air cargo softened.

“The load factor was 7.3 points below 2022 and due to the increased belly capacity, the yield declined as well resulting in a decrease in unit revenue per Available Ton Kilometer of 42.1% against a constant currency.”

Overall Air France-KLM Group revenues for the quarter were €7.6bn, up 14.1% (in constant currency) year on year.

This was “driven by a higher capacity (+8%), a higher passenger load factor (+3 pt) and a higher passenger yield (+9%)”, said the Group.

Benjamin Smith, Group chief executive, said: “We have again delivered a strong set of results during the Second Quarter of 2023. In spite of the inflationary context, we posted double-digit growth in our revenues and a record operating margin.”