The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reports that the industry experienced a 12-year high in traffic growth (7.9%) and a record first half load factor of 80.7% for the first six months of 2017.

The association announced global passenger traffic data for June showing that demand rose by 7.8% compared to the year-ago period. This was in line with the 7.7% growth recorded in May. All regions reported growth. June capacity increased by 6.5%, and load factor rose 1.0 percentage point to 81.9%.

IATA attributed the results to “a brighter economic picture and lower airfares”.

June international passenger demand rose 7.5% compared to June 2016. All regions recorded growth, led by airlines in Africa. Capacity climbed 6.2%, and load factor climbed 1.0 percentage point, to 80.6%.

* Asia-Pacific airlines’ June traffic jumped 9.1% compared to the year-ago period. Capacity rose 7.9% and load factor edged up 0.9 percentage points, to 79.3%. IATA sees traffic on Asia-Europe routes continuing to trend upwards following terrorism related disruptions in early 2016. However, solid demand growth on international routes within Asia has paused.

* European carriers saw traffic rise 8.8% in June compared to June 2016, which was up from a 7.5% year-over-year increase recorded in May. Capacity climbed 6.5% and load factor rose 1.8% percentage points, to 85.9%, highest among the regions.

* Middle Eastern carriers posted a 2.5% traffic increase in June, which was a slowdown from the already subdued 3.7% growth seen in May. Capacity rose 3.1%, and load factor slipped down 0.4 percentage points, to 68.9%. IAIA comments that, while most markets have seen demand slowing, it is most visible on the Middle East-North America market, which has been affected by a combination of factors including the (recently-lifted) ban on personal electronic devices, as well as a wider negative stimulation from the travel ban that has now been implemented for certain countries.

* North American airlines’ demand rose 4.4% compared to June a year ago. Capacity climbed 4.1%, with load factor inching up 0.3 percentage points, to 84.5%.

* Latin American airlines experienced a 9.7% rise in demand compared to the same month last year supported by strong travel within the region, while travel to North America is flat to down slightly. Capacity increased by 9.1% and load factor rose 0.4 percentage points, to 82.1%.

* African airlines’ traffic soared 9.9% in June. Capacity rose 7.1%, and load factor jumped 1.7 percentage points, to 64.3%, although this still was the lowest among regions.

Demand for domestic travel climbed 8.2% in June compared to June 2016, up slightly from the 7.9% growth seen in May. June capacity increased 7.0%, and load factor rose 0.9 percentage points to 84.3%. Led by India (+20.3%) and China (+17.6%), all markets reported demand increases, but with wide variations.