HKIA is seeing strong post-pandemic recovery and expects to exceed 2019 numbers later this year. Image: Hong Kong International Airport

Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) has released traffic data for December 2023, when 4.3 million passengers travelled through the airport representing 80% of 2019 volumes.

Passenger numbers and flight movements both reached post-2019 records for the month, according to Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK). 

Flight movements for December rose by 89% year on year. 

For the whole year, HKIA handled 40m passengers and 276,000 flight movements, increases of 600% and 100% respectively on 2022 numbers.

Cargo throughout for the year reached 4.3m tonnes, an increase of 3.2% year-on-year.

All passenger segments saw growth in December, according to HKIA. Traffic to and from Southeast Asia, Mainland China and Taiwan saw the biggest increases. 

HKIA passenger traffic is expected to fully recover to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024. 

Earlier this week, HKIA opened a tender for a smart gadgets and technology product concessions. Two licences are available at Terminal 1 for units covering a total area of 1,833sq ft.

Last year, m1nd-set data showed that HKIA was the “clear winner” when it came to average passenger spend among the five largest airports by international arrivals. Key categories driving spend in Hong Kong included jewellery and watches, and makeup and skincare.