Passenger numbers continue to grow at Hong Kong International Airport

Hong Kong International Airport (HKG) continued to record steady growth in August 2026, handling 5.86 million passengers and 34,995 aircraft movements, representing year-on-year increases of 3.5% and 0.5% respectively.

Passenger volume exceeded 210,000 on August 1, marking the highest daily passenger traffic during the summer travel peak this year, excluding days affected by flight rescheduling due to adverse weather.

Transfer/ transit passengers continued to drive overall passenger growth in August, recording a double-digit increase. Growth was mainly led by traffic with the Chinese Mainland and South Korea, while the decline in the Middle East moderated further.

In the first eight months of the year, passenger volume grew by 10.1% year on year to 44.3 million, while aircraft movements increased by 3.5% year on year to 269,900.

On a 12-month rolling basis, passenger volume rose by 11.4% year on year to 65.0 million, while flight movements increased by 4.5% to 403,850.

Rather surprisingly cargo volume declined by 1.2% year on year to 422,000 tonnes in August 2026, which Airport Authority Hong Kong attributes to a 8.8% decline in exports, partially offset by 18.2% growth in transhipments and 3.6% growth in imports.

Among key trading regions, Southeast Asia and the Chinese Mainland remained resilient, helping to cushion softer traffic with Europe and the Middle East amid evolving regional trade dynamics.

From January to August this year, cargo traffic recorded year-on-year growth of 17% in the Chinese Mainland, 14% in Southeast Asia and 8% in Europe, offsetting declines in North America and the Middle East.

As a result. total cargo throughput over the eight-month period increased by 2.6% year on year to 3.34 million tonnes and reached over 5.15 million tonnes (+2.7%) on a rolling 12-month rolling basis.