Mideast airlines post highest rise in passenger demand in June

Middle Eastern airlines posted an 11-percent year-on-year increase in passenger demand in June, outperforming the international average of 7.7 percent, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said Sunday.

Such robust performance by Middle Eastern carriers in June represented "a sharp turnaround from the flat traffic growth in May, which was partly attributable to the timing of Ramadan between the two years," IATA said in an e-mailed statement.

The ban on large portable electronic devices a year ago, as well as the travel restrictions imposed by the United States for visitors from certain Middle East and African countries, were also behind the surge, it added.

The 11-percent increase is also the highest surge among all global regions, followed by Africa (10.9 percent) and Asia-Pacific (9.5 percent).

"The first half of 2018 concluded with another month of above-trend demand growth, which is a good indicator for the peak summer travel season in the northern hemisphere," said Alexandre de Juniac, director general and CEO of IATA.

However, dark clouds are still increasingly covering skies regarding the outlook for civil aviation for the second half of the year, he added.

"The looming prospect of a global trade war is casting a long shadow. Additionally, rising cost inputs are reducing the stimulus of lower fares," said de Juniac.

"Fuel prices have soared by approximately 60 percent over the past year," he explained.

Earlier in the day, Dubai-based Emirates Airline, one of the world's biggest carriers, launched a one-week-long sales offer with special fares to 70 destinations globally.