U.S. President Donald Trump's intensifying trade war with China dented air cargo traffic even before FedEx Corp. got dragged into the brawl, as companies worldwide reconfigure their supply chains in the face of increasing tariffs.
Global cargo demand fell 4.7 percent in April from a year earlier, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), equaling a February drop that was the worst in three years, with the biggest declines coming from manufacturing hubs in Asia and Europe.
Freight operators are bracing for more disruption as tensions between Washington and Beijing ratchet up, and trade experts warn that declining shipments — worsened by Brexit jitters and simmering tensions in the Middle East — indicate a slowdown in global growth.