March passenger volume wasn’t so lucky, falling 0.3 percent from February. IATA Director General and CEO Giovanni Bisignani blames the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and the widespread unrest in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for the slowdown in passenger growth.

Cargo volumes, however, were high across the globe. Asia-Pacific carriers, which comprise 43 percent of the international airfreight sector, reported 0.6 percent growth in cargo demand, compared to March 2010. Moreover, airfreight demand in this region increased by 8.2 percent since February. “Were it not for the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, the rebound would have been much stronger,” IATA said in a statement.

Other regions that experienced airfreight growth were Europe and North America. Airfreight transported by European and North American carriers rose 6.1 percent and 7.1 percent, respectively, from March 2010. When compared to February numbers, however, the growth was less pronounced: European carriers transported 1.8 percent more freight in February, while North American carriers only saw a 0.2 percent increase.

Middle East and Latin American carriers saw the biggest increases in freight demand, reporting 10.1 percent and 10.4 percent growth from March 2010, respectively.

African carriers, affected by the turmoil in the MENA region, fared the worst in March. Unlike the other nations’ carriers, they actually reported a decrease in demand, with numbers falling 2.8 percent from March 2010.