HONG KONG, 19 June 2026: Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) reports a steady growth of air traffic in May, with the airport handling 5.34 million passengers and 33,655 flight movements representing year-on-year growth of 10.2% and 3.6%, respectively. 

Cargo volume increased to 435,000 tonnes with a 3.0% year-on-year growth during the month.

Photo credit: HKIA. Steady air traffic growth in May.

Overall passenger growth in May was supported by a double-digit increase in transfer / transit passengers, followed by visitors. During the Chinese Mainland’s Labour Day “Golden Week” holiday, daily passengers peaked at 204,000 on 1 May. By region, most markets expanded in May, with growth led by the Mainland, Japan and Southeast Asia.

Overall cargo growth was primarily driven by transhipment, followed by imports, which recorded year‑on‑year increases of 23.2% and 1.2%, respectively. By region, cargo performance was mixed, with growth in the Mainland and Southeast Asia offsetting declines in markets such as India. Notably, the Middle East saw modest growth in May, marking its first expansion since the outbreak of the conflicts in March.

HKIA’s global network has further expanded, with Delta Air Lines returning to HKIA with new services between Hong Kong and Los Angeles, offering seven pairs of flights per week from 8 June, strengthening HKIA’s connectivity with North America. Sun PhuQuoc Airways also launched new services to Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam, while Hong Kong Airlines launched a new route to Lanzhou in May.

For the first five months of the year, passenger volume rose by 12.5% year on year to 27.7 million, while flight movements increased by 4.8% year on year to 168,745. Cargo throughput recorded a 3.6% increase to 2.06 million tonnes compared to the same period of last year.

On a 12-month rolling basis, HKIA handled 64.0 million passengers and 402,415 flight movements, experiencing year-on-year increases of 13.0% and 6.1% respectively. Cargo volume grew by 3.0% year on year to 5.14 million tonnes.

(Source: HKIA)