IATA: Industry growth strong, but at a turning point

IATA director general and CEO Tony Tyler stated (03-Sep-2013) passenger demand continues to be strong and the industry association still expects to see the airline industry report 5% growth in 2013, but "how that growth is achieved, however, appears to be at a turning point". IATA sees the emergence of the Eurozone from an 18-month recession as providing the biggest boost to traffic over recent months, while the deceleration of the Chinese economy has been a dampener on air travel, with weakness showing up throughout emerging Asian markets. In addition to this, oil prices are "tracking political tensions in the Middle East", which creates a global cost impact, as well the potential for disruption for in the Middle East, "one of aviation's strongest and most consistent growth markets", at the regional level. [more - original PR]