SYDNEY — Last month saw a slowdown in passenger demand, says IATA, with all regions recording decreased traffic in April 2018 compared to March 2018.

Global passenger traffic data for the month of April show that demand rose by 6.2% compared to April 2017, which was down from a 12-month high of 9.7% in March. April capacity increased by 5.9%, while load factor climbed 0.2 percentage point to 82.3%, which was a record for the month of April, surpassing last year’s record of 82.1%.

“Demand for air transport continues to be above the long-term trend. However, increases in airline cost inputs, most notably fuel prices, means that we are unlikely to see increased stimulation from lower fares in 2018, compared to previous years,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.

April international passenger demand rose 4.8% compared to April 2017. All regions recorded year-over-year traffic increases but all were behind the pace of growth reported in March. Total capacity climbed 4.9% and load factor slipped 0.1 percentage point to 81.4%.

North American airlines posted a 0.9% demand increase compared to April a year ago, a significant decrease compared to the 9.5% growth experienced in March. A bounce-back is expected in May, supported by the relatively strong economic backdrop in the U.S. Capacity climbed 2.4%, and load factor fell 1.2 percentage points to 80.7%.