LATAM Cargo posts stronger August numbers, but still down for 2017

LATAM Airlines Cargo reported its fourth straight month of gains in revenue tonne kilometers (RTKs) for August. However, the beleaguered Chilean carrier’s RTKs, year-to-date, are still lower compared with the same period in 2016, as struggling Latin American economies weighed on cargo volumes in the region during the first half of 2017.

LATAM Cargo reported an airfreight volume of 291 million RTKs in August, for an increase of 7.6 percent, year-over-year, which marks the strongest increase for any month since LATAM’s declining fortunes first reversed with 1.3 percent growth in May. But after a dismal first half,the carrier still has more ground to make up to beat last year’s numbers – year-to-date, RTKs are still down 1.8 percent from 2016 at less than 2.2 billion RTKs.

Load factors improved for August and year-to-date, reaching 54 percent and 53.3 percent, respectively, compared to 2016’s August load factor of 48.4 percent. This is due, in part, to LATAM’s efforts to offset declining volumes in the region by reducing its cargo capacity. The carrier’s available tonne kilometers subsequently fell 3.8 percent, y-o-y, for August to 540 million, and 8.4 percent, year-to-date, compared with the same period in 2016.

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