Air Cargo This Week: October 26, 2026
Peak season arrived as soon as Asian factories came back from Golden Week. WorldACD's full-market rate rose to $3.23/kg in week 42, Freightos put China to US spot up 19% at $6.88/kg, and the Baltic Air Freight Index gained 4.7% to sit above the highs of the last two peaks. Jet fuel climbed again to $196.70 a barrel, 118.5% above a year ago. Taiwanese press counted nearly 100 US charter flights in September, sent by American electronics companies to collect AI servers and chip equipment. The EU's €2 handling fee starts Saturday, November 1, and low-value China to EU e-commerce air tonnage is already half what it was a year ago.
Arrows show the direction each source reports: ▲ up, ▼ down, ▬ flat or no new reading. Broker, airline and press commentary is marked as reported.
Fuel
| Measure (week ending Oct 23) | Price | Week on week | Year on year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Global average jet fuel | $196.70/bbl | ▲ +2.2% | ▲ +118.5% |
| North America jet fuel | $202.58/bbl | ▲ +4.4% | ▲ +121.1% |
| Asia and Oceania jet fuel | $179.48/bbl | ▲ +2.1% | ▲ +106.7% |
| Dated Brent crude | $120.93/bbl | ▼ -4.8% | |
| Jet crack spread | $75.77 | ▲ +15.7% |
Jet fuel rose even as crude fell, because the refining margin on jet widened. The global average was also 6.6% above the prior month's average (IATA Jet Fuel Price Monitor, week ending Oct 23).
Volume trending
| Source | Period | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| WorldACD | Week 39 (Sep 21 to 27) | Tonnage ▼ -4% on the week, ▲ +5% on the year |
| WorldACD | Week 40 (Sep 28 to Oct 4) | Tonnage ▼ -2% on the week, with East Asia holidays |
| WorldACD | Week 41 (Oct 5 to 11) | Tonnage ▼ -1% on the week, ▲ +9% on the year |
| WorldACD | Week 42 (Oct 12 to 18) | Tonnage ▲ +2% on the week. Asia Pacific origin ▲ +9%. Asia Pacific to USA ▲ +10% on the week and ▲ +14% on the year. Asia Pacific to Europe ▲ +13% on the week but ▼ -16% on the year. North America origin ▼ -5% on the week |
| WorldACD | Weeks 41 and 42 against the prior two weeks | Worldwide chargeable weight ▬ flat, ▲ +6% on the year |
| Xeneta | July, August, September (no new reading this week; Oct 1) | Volumes ▲ +5%, +6% and +6% on the year |
| IATA | August (no new reading this week; Sep 29) | Demand (CTK) ▲ +4.4% on the year, load factor 46.0% |
The holiday dip ended in week 42. The gap between Asia to US, up 14% on the year, and Asia to Europe, down 16%, is now the clearest signal in the volume data. On price, WorldACD's full-market rate for the five weeks to October 18 ran $3.06, $3.12, $3.12, $3.09 and $3.23/kg, against $2.48 in the same week last year, and overall pricing was almost 30% above a year earlier. WorldACD revised week 41 to $3.09 from the $3.13 we showed last week, and its public report did not give a global spot figure this week (WorldACD week 42 report). The Baltic Air Freight Index (BAI00) rose 4.7% to 2,672 in the week to October 19, 26.4% above a year earlier (TAC Freight Dashboard; TIACA and TAC, Oct 19).
Indicative lane pricing
These are indicative spot benchmarks from public sources. Providers measure differently and over different periods, so treat them as a guide and get a real quote for your shipment. A blank cell means the source doesn't publish that figure, and "not available" means we found no published reading. Xeneta has not published a lane rate since its October 1 report, so its rows are carried over.
| Lane | Latest spot | Week change | Year change | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China to North America | $6.88/kg (week to Oct 20) | ▲ +19% | ▲ +25% (transpacific) | Freightos, Oct 20 |
| Asia Pacific to USA, all origins | ▲ +6% (week 42) | ▲ +41% | WorldACD week 42 | |
| Northeast Asia to North America | $6.03/kg (September average) | ▬ no new reading (September was ▲ +5% on August) | Xeneta, Oct 1 | |
| China to Europe | $3.87/kg (week to Oct 20) | ▲ +8% | ▼ -3% (Asia to Europe) | Freightos, Oct 20 |
| Northeast Asia to Europe | $4.74/kg (September average) | ▬ no new reading (September was ▲ +5% on August) | Xeneta, Oct 1 | |
| Southeast Asia to North America | not available | ▲ Singapore to USA +23% (week 42) | not available | WorldACD week 42 |
| Taiwan to US, forwarder quotes (reported) | NT$357 to 387/kg standard; urgent above NT$400/kg (about US$12.30) | ▲ more than 10% short-term rise | Taiwan News citing UDN, Oct 26 | |
| Europe to North America | not available | ▲ +2% (Northern Europe, week to Oct 20) | Freightos, Oct 20 | |
| North America to Europe | ▼ "a little lower" per TAC (week to Oct 19) | TIACA and TAC, Oct 19 |
Charter market: Asia Pacific to US
Charter rates and individual flights are mostly unpublished. Where a figure isn't published, the table says "not available".
| Indicator | Reading | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Published full-charter rate, Asia Pacific to US | not available | No public index found | |
| ACMI block-hour rates dated this week | not available | No dated print found | |
| Taiwan to US urgent scheduled quotes, a proxy for charter pressure | ▲ above NT$400/kg (about US$12.30), a year high | Reported | UDN, Oct 26; Taiwan News, Oct 26 |
| US charter flights into Taiwan, September | ▲ nearly 100, arranged by US electronics companies | Reported (UDN, citing China Airlines and EVA Air) | UDN, Oct 26 |
| Asia Pacific to USA rates, week 42 | ▲ +6% on the week, ▲ +41% on the year | WorldACD | WorldACD week 42 |
| Capacity from Asia Pacific origins, week 42 | ▲ +6% on the week, on freighter deployment | WorldACD | WorldACD week 42 |
| Outbound index Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore (week to Oct 19) | ▲ +5.3%, ▲ +8.4%, ▲ +14.6% | TAC | TAC dashboard |
| Number of ad hoc Asia Pacific to US charters this week | not available |
Reported: EVA Air general manager Sun Chia-ming said AI cargo has left almost no off-season this year and that Q4 rates still have room to rise. China Airlines called the cargo market "very, very good", with some flights hard to book (UDN, Oct 26). Cathay Cargo said semiconductor flows underpinned demand and expects it to strengthen into the year-end peak (Air Cargo News, Oct 22). Kuehne+Nagel's CEO said half of its airfreight capacity comes from its own charter operations, with the rest on block space agreements (The Loadstar, Oct 23). Our read is that ad hoc charter space out of Taiwan for November is likely tight, though no published charter rate confirms it.
Aircraft and operators in this week's reporting include the Boeing 777F, now the most widely operated freighter with more than 330 in service (Air Cargo News, Oct 23), and Cathay's five weekly peak freighters from Hong Kong to Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and Mexico, running September to mid December (Air Cargo News, Oct 8). NX Group and JAL fly a weekly 747F circuit linking Los Angeles, Narita, Taipei and Singapore from October 3 (Nippon Express, Oct 1). Chapman Freeborn won Air Charter Broker of the Year at the Payload Asia Awards on October 19 (Chapman Freeborn). Brokers on specific Asia Pacific to US flights this week: not available.
Data center freight charters
| Route | Aircraft | Cargo | Customer | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US to Taiwan to US (charters sent to collect cargo) | not available | AI servers, semiconductor equipment and related high-tech products | "US electronics companies", not named | Nearly 100 flights in September 2026 | UDN, Oct 26 (reported) |
No individual data center charter dated this week was publicly reported with its route, aircraft and customer. WorldACD ties Asia Pacific to USA tonnage running 14% above last year to "the ongoing strength of AI-related traffic crossing the Pacific" (WorldACD week 42), and Kuehne+Nagel's CFO said "the hyperscaler is a good part of our growth in 2026" (The Loadstar, Oct 23). Reuters reported that Boeing has built no 777 freighters for nearly two months because of a supplier dispute, with 21 delivered this year against 35 in 2025 (STAT Times summarizing Reuters, Oct 25). That means less new long-haul main-deck lift just as AI cargo peaks.
E-commerce trending
Low-value China to EU air parcels have halved, while China to US platform sales and local-warehouse models are growing. Aevean data show low-value Chinese e-commerce air tonnage fell 19% on the year in September, with volumes to the EU down 50% and to North America down 4% (Air Cargo News, Oct 23). WorldACD puts Hong Kong to Europe tonnage down 32% in week 42 because of EU curbs on e-commerce parcels (WorldACD week 42). Holdwise priced a China-made T-shirt and watch at €19.50 per order shipped direct from China, against €10.00 from stock held in the Netherlands (Air Cargo News, Oct 23).
TikTok Shop said average daily sales for cross-border self-operated sellers in its US fall sale (October 5 to 18) nearly doubled on last year. Amazon will raise its European fuel and logistics surcharge on FBA orders from 1.5% to 2% on November 2, and Shein said its logistics center near Wrocław, Poland, added more than 3,000 jobs this year (Ebrun, Oct 25; Ebrun, Oct 26; Ebrun, Oct 20). The Commission confirms the €2 Union handling fee applies from November 1 (European Commission), and Air Cargo Week reports it applies per line, not only per parcel (Air Cargo Week, Oct 20). In the US, CBP set January 20, 2027 as the compliance date for formal entry of dutiable mail shipments (Federal Register, Oct 22), and comments on its low-value shipments proposal close December 7 (Federal Register).
Industry news
- Kuehne+Nagel's Q3 air volumes rose 10% to 619,000 tonnes, air revenue 38% to CHF2.4bn and air EBIT 84% to CHF169m (Air Cargo News, Oct 22). DSV's air volumes fell 3% to 560,890 tonnes on weak Europe and lower Asia to Europe e-commerce, though air revenue rose 16.6% (Air Cargo News, Oct 21; The Loadstar, Oct 22).
- Cathay Cargo carried more than 150,000 tonnes in September, up 14.2% (Air Cargo News, Oct 22). Hong Kong airport handled 433,000 tonnes, up 6.3% after declines in July and August (Air Cargo News, Oct 20), and East Midlands rose 6.3% (Air Cargo News, Oct 22).
- A parked Cargolux 747-8F had its left wing landing gear collapse at Luxembourg on October 23. No one was hurt, and the airline added inspections across its 747-8F fleet (Air Cargo News, Oct 26). An Antonov An-124 had a fire on landing at Nagoya Chubu on October 22, NHK reported (Air Cargo Week, Oct 23).
- Airbus now expects the dedicated freighter fleet to grow from 2,360 aircraft in 2026 to 3,460 by 2045 (Air Cargo News, Oct 22). IBA values a new A350F at $197m to $198m against about $170m for a 777F (Air Cargo News, Oct 26). IAI, Ascent and World Star started 777-300ERSF conversions at Marana, Arizona (Air Cargo News, Oct 22), and LATAM Cargo and ATSG executives called for a 767F replacement (Air Cargo News, Oct 24).
- Qatar Airways Cargo adds 777F loops through Chicago, New York JFK and Atlanta from late October and November 1 (Air Cargo News, Oct 22), and put its capacity on US booking platform Pelicargo (Air Cargo News, Oct 22). Air Canada Cargo starts twice-weekly Toronto to Amsterdam freighters on October 29 (STAT Times, Oct 23).
- Mexico says 10 to 12 new US routes could launch after sanctions were lifted, though no Mexican cargo airline has announced new US freighter flights (The Loadstar, Oct 22). Liège Airport has moved more than 10,000 tonnes of pharma to Chicago O'Hare this year (Air Cargo Week, Oct 22).
- The Cargo Airline Association named Josh Dover managing director of legislative affairs, and ECS Group named Francisco Hernandez COO Americas (Air Cargo News, Oct 21; Air Cargo News, Oct 22).
What it means if you ship pallets and crates
Transpacific space is tightening before November retail volumes arrive, with China to US spot up 19% and urgent Taiwan quotes above US$12/kg. Book early for anything that has to move before December. Fuel surcharges are unlikely to ease while jet fuel sits 118.5% above last year. China to Europe is the softer lane as the €2 fee lands on November 1.
See this week's benchmark rates at /rates, or send a $99 Founding Shipper booking request and we'll book your freight at the carrier's price with no markup.