Global Aviation revenues expected to hit $1 trillion for the first time

Global Aviation revenues are expected to hit $1 trillion in 2025, marking the first time that industry revenues have reached a trillion, according to IATA. 

Despite this headline figure, the industry is operating on razor-thin profit margins, driven by higher fuel costs and other associated costs, with net profit expected to be $36.6 billion in 2025, which is a 3.6% profit margin. 

Costs are expected to grow by 4% in 2025 to $940 billion, driven by higher fuel costs and other non-fuel costs such as labour wage increase, aircraft maintenance costs and groundings. 

“In 2025, industry revenues will exceed $1 trillion for the first time. It’s also important to put that into perspective. A trillion dollars is a lot—almost 1% of the global economy. That makes airlines a strategically important industry. But remember that airlines carry $940 billion in costs, not to mention interest and taxes. They retain a net profit margin of just 3.6%... “ said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General. 

IATA also notes that the global aviation industry has been on a recovery trajectory following the COVID-19 pandemic, with significant improvements in both revenue and profitability. In 2023, the industry achieved revenues of $896 billion, resulting in a net profit of $23.3 billion, which corresponds to a net profit margin of approximately 2.6%. 

Passenger numbers are expected to reach 5.2 billion in 2025, the first time that passenger numbers have exceeded five billion. Passenger revenue is also expected to hit $705 billion in 2025 too. 

Cargo revenues, which increased in demand following the geopolitical uncertainty in the Suez Canal that impacted global trade and a booming e-commerce trade in Asia, is expected to grow again in 2025, generating $157 billion in expected revenue and 72.5 million tons in expected volume.