HONG KONG, 22 October 2026: Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) saw steady growth across all key traffic areas in September.
Passenger traffic grew 10.2% year on year to 4.86 million passengers, while flight movements rose 7% to 32,175, and cargo volume increased 6.3% to 433,000 tonnes.
Overall passenger growth remained driven primarily by transfer/transit passengers, which rose by double digits. Visitors followed, rising 5% year-on-year.
Regionally, most markets grew, with the strongest contribution from the Chinese Mainland, while the Middle East decline continued to ease.
On the cargo front, transshipments and imports led September growth, rising 26.9% and 9.2%, respectively. Southeast Asia and the Chinese Mainland drove most of the growth, offsetting the decline in volume in Europe after the EU removed its duty-free de minimis exemption in July.
In the first three quarters of the year, HKIA handled 49.1 million passengers, while flight movements reached 302,075, up 10.1% and 3.9% year-on-year, respectively. Cargo volume rose 3.1% year on year to 3.78 million tonnes.
On a 12-month rolling basis, passenger throughput increased 11.5% year on year to 65.4 million, while flight movements rose 4.9% to 405,945. Cargo throughput grew 3.3% year on year to 5.18 million tonnes.
Meanwhile, HKIA has recently garnered Best Airport honours at a series of prestigious international awards.
HKIA was voted “Asia’s Leading Airport” for the sixth time since 2020 and “China’s Leading Airport” for the fifth consecutive year at this year’s World Travel Awards. Regarded as a hallmark of industry excellence, the World Travel Awards are selected by travel industry specialists and travellers worldwide to recognise excellence across key sectors of the travel, tourism, and hospitality industries.
Airport Authority Hong Kong CEO Vivian Cheung said: “We are honoured that HKIA has once again stood out among airports across Asia, receiving multiple Best Airport accolades at prestigious international awards. These awards not only reaffirm HKIA’s achievements over the years, but also recognise the dedication and collective efforts of the entire airport community. Looking ahead, we will continue to work closely with business partners to enhance the passenger experience and deliver world-class airport services, further strengthening HKIA’s position as the Hub of Asia.”
(Source: HKIA)
