KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 10): The International Air Transport Association (IATA) in its October 2017 Airlines Financial Monitor said the initial financial data for Q3 point to a healthy industry EBIT margin of 16.3%, down only slightly on a year ago.

In the report released yesterday, IATA said European airlines posted the widest profit margin on this occasion, overtaking their North American counterparts.

It said having trended downwards between late-2014 and late-2016, underlying industry-wide passenger yields are now broadly unchanged from their level a year-ago.

“Global airline share prices rose by 1.7% in October, driven by gains for European and Asia Pacific airlines. Airline shares have outperformed the broader market over the past year.

 “Oil prices rose through the US$60/bbl mark during October, amid signs that OPEC-led production cuts could be extended until end-2018, and rising tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” it said.

IATA said passenger and freight volumes both grew robustly in year-on-year terms in September, although the seasonally-adjusted (SA) upward trends in both series eased between Q2 and Q3.

It said the passenger load factor remains at an elevated level by historical standards, while the SA freight load factor is currently at a level last seen in late-2014.

“There is a wide spread in premium-class performance at a route level, but the pick-up in global trade conditions is helping to support demand on some of the key markets to, from, and within Asia,” it said.