China's air freight volume hits record high

BEIJING -- The volume of China's air cargo has reached a historic peak, fueled by robust growth in international air freight, an official with the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said on Tuesday.

Between January and October of this year, the country's aviation sector handled nearly 7.3 million tons of cargo and mail, marking a 19.3 percent increase compared to the same period in 2019, said CAAC official Shang Kejia.

Notably, international routes carried about 2.93 million tons of cargo and mail, up by a significant 48.5 percent from the same period in 2019, Shang said.

Over the past week, for instance, the average daily cargo flights reached 752, including 498 international flights, reflecting year-on-year growth of 70.9 percent and 100.4 percent, respectively.

The surge in air cargo comes in the backdrop of China's industrial transformation, deeper Belt and Road cooperation, and the rapid development of cross-border e-commerce, Shang noted.

Looking ahead, Shang said the CAAC will continue to focus on enhancing the allocation of air traffic rights, refining route and flight management policies, and advancing cost reduction and efficiency improvements in air logistics.