Air transport, freight in China
China: Air transport, freight was 26,170 million ton-km in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Air transport, freight in China, 1974–2023
Source: Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Measured in million ton-km.
Analysis
The most recent figure for air transport, freight in China is 26,170 million ton-km, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 50 years on record.
That represents a change of up 38.0% on the previous year and up 63.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, air transport, freight in China peaked at 26,170 million ton-km in 2023 and was at its lowest, 29.2 million ton-km, in 1974.
China ranks 2nd of 180 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 65.57 million ton-km | 29.2 million ton-km | 123 million ton-km | 6 |
| 1980s | 391.14 million ton-km | 120.9 million ton-km | 731.8 million ton-km | 10 |
| 1990s | 1,745 million ton-km | 818.3 million ton-km | 3,295 million ton-km | 10 |
| 2000s | 7,564 million ton-km | 3,900 million ton-km | 11,976 million ton-km | 10 |
| 2010s | 19,849 million ton-km | 15,569 million ton-km | 25,395 million ton-km | 10 |
| 2020s | 21,340 million ton-km | 18,964 million ton-km | 26,170 million ton-km | 4 |
Countries ranked near China
- 1 United States 42,763 million ton-km compare
- 3 Qatar 13,927 million ton-km compare
- 4 United Arab Emirates 13,566 million ton-km compare
- 5 Germany 12,766 million ton-km compare
More infrastructure data for China
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 11.73 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 166.51 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 131.75 per 100 people (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 1.87 billion (2024)
- Air transport, registered carrier departures worldwide 4.91 million (2023)
- Air transport, passengers carried 619.22 million (2023)
- Renewable internal freshwater resources, total 2,813 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Renewable internal freshwater resources per capita 1,992 cubic meters (2022)
- Individuals using the Internet 91.6% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, domestic 20.1% (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is air transport, freight in China?
- Air transport, freight in China was 26,170 million ton-km in 2023, according to Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
- What is the highest air transport, freight recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 26,170 million ton-km in 2023.
- What is the lowest air transport, freight recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 29.2 million ton-km in 1974.
- How does China rank for air transport, freight?
- China ranks 2nd out of 180 countries with data for 2023.
- Is air transport, freight rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 63.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), published as part of Air transport, freight (million ton-km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Air freight is the volume of freight, express, and diplomatic bags carried on each flight stage (operation of an aircraft from takeoff to its next landing), measured in metric tons times kilometers traveled.