Stronger global trade conditions helped to support airlines’ premium-class demand last year, new figures reveal.
The premium cabin share of total international passenger revenues increased to 27% in the first 11 months of 2017, up from 25.9% the previous year, according to Iata.
“Premium-class demand in 2017 has been supported by the broad-based pick-up in economic and trade conditions, particularly on key markets to, from and within Asia.
“That said, demand has lagged behind in a number of cases, notably between Europe and the Middle East, where impacts from travel bans and tighter budgets in the Gulf region have taken a toll,” the association said.
Overall passenger carryings grew by 7.6% “carrying solid momentum into 2018”.
The passenger load factor posted a record high for a calendar year in 2017 at 81.4%.
The airline trade body said: “Industry-wide passenger yields in late-2017 were largely unchanged in year-on-year terms.
“We forecast passenger yields to rise modestly in 2018 alongside a strengthening in global economic activity and rises in key input costs.
“Oil prices rose to a three-year high during January, but fell back sharply in early-February driven by record-high levels of oil production in the US.”
Initial airline financial results from the final quarter of 2017 indicate that the industry-wide profit margin remained broadly unchanged against the same period in 2016, at a “robust” 10.7% of revenues.