Global air passenger traffic rises 7.1% in January, Iata says

FRANKFURT-the fall in oil prices helped boost global demand for air travel in January, pointing to a strong year for passenger traffic, said the international air transport Association (Iata) on Tuesday.
The demand for air traffic, measured by revenue passenger kilometers, rose 7,1% in January, with the occupancy rate advancing 1,1%, according to the monthly traffic of Iata data released on Tuesday.
"January has kept strong traffic growth trend seen in 2015, which shows the demand for connectivity resilience despite the recent turmoil in equity markets," said Tony Tyler, Director General and ceo of Iata.
The record occupancy rate is the result of strong demand, more productive use of the seats by the airlines and the recent decline in oil prices, said Tyler.
"The basic conditions indicate another year strong passenger traffic, with the recent fall in oil prices probably giving additional stimulus to the growth of air travel," he said.