Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) handled 4 million passengers in April, a 5.9% increase from April 2006, as thousands of people left Hong Kong during the Easter and Ching Ming holidays. On April 5, the day before Good Friday, HKIA set a new record with more than 890 aircraft movements.

In April 2007, HKIA processed 299,000 tonnes of cargo and saw 24,460 aircraft movements. These figures represent increases of 1.4% and 3.9%, respectively, from April 2006.

For the 12 months ended April 30, 2007, passenger traffic rose to 45.3 million, 7.8% higher than the corresponding period last year. Cargo throughput and aircraft movements grew 2.8% and 4.3%, to 3.6 million tonnes and 283,940, respectively.

Chief Executive Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong, Mr Stanley Hui, said, "While the strong upward trend in passenger traffic continues, cargo volumes softened during the first quarter. The air cargo market is well known for its volatility and seasonality, and markets in the Asia Pacific region generally slowed down in the first quarter. Despite the recent fluctuation in cargo volumes, we continue to expand our cargo handling facilities at the HKIA to meet future growth in demand."

Recently, the airport's freight systems and infrastructure were recognised by Air Cargo World, which presented HKIA with the Air Cargo Excellence Award. In the magazine's third annual survey, HKIA ranked first among airports in Asia and the Middle East handling over 1 million tonnes of cargo per year. Airports were rated on four areas: competitive rates, service standards, facilities and regulatory operations.

Commenting on the award, Mr Hui noted that aviation and logistics are key elements of Hong Kong's economy. "We are committed to enhancing Hong Kong's position as a regional logistics hub and a cargo gateway of the Chinese Mainland and we will continue to enhance our cargo-handling capabilities to meet increasing demand."