India's domestic air traffic increased by 4.2% in June

New Delhi: India's domestic air traffic grew by 4.2 percent in June this year compared with last year, a little lower than the average global growth rate.

"Growth in India so far this year (January-June) has been weak at two percent. Although there is positive sentiment for the incoming government, inflation is high and consumer demand remains constrained," the International Air Transport Association (Iata) said while announcing the latest global data.[caption id="attachment_92982" align="alignnone" width="300"] Attracting more passengers. Reuters[/caption]

The data showed a modest deceleration in demand growth compared to May, with total revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs) rising 4.7 percent over the year-ago period. In May this year, 6.2 percent was the year-on-year increase.

The traffic flown by Asia-Pacific carriers rose 4.9 percent compared to the year-ago period but capacity rose 6.7 percent as load factor slipped 1.3 percentage points to 77.9 percent, the data showed.

The outlook for this region looked "broadly positive, with measures of manufacturing activity and export orders pointing to better performance of China", the Iata said.

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"Demand for air travel and the connectivity it provides remains strong. But uncertainty in the global political and economic climate has the potential to negatively impact demand," Iata's director general and CEO Tony Tyler said.

"Risk is today is reality, whether it's conflict in the Middle East, sanctions and an impending trade war with Russia, possible default in Argentina or the Ebola outbreak in Western Africa. All have the potential to dent demand," he warned.

PTI