Amsterdam Airport Schiphol has seen cargo volumes dip by 0.7 per cent to 1.6 million tonnes in 2015 following a record breaking year in 2014.

The airport says the first half of 2015 was weak but improvements in the second half meant the overall decline was minimal, with the fourth quarter proving strong, despite weakness in China.

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol cargo director, Jonas van Stekelenburg says: “From a weak beginning in the first half of 2015, Schiphol has seen better traffic levels in the second half, ending with a total tonnage that is surprisingly close to our all-time record set in 2014.”

By region, North America saw the strongest growth, up by 5.6 per cent, followed by Latin America, rising by 5.1 per cent, while Africa saw marginal growth of 0.5 per cent. Asia saw a 2.8 per cent drop, the Middle East contracted by 0.1 per cent and Europe saw a reduction of 12.7 per cent. Freighter movements increased by 1.2 per cent to 16,775 tonnes.

Among the regions, Asia remained Schiphol’s largest region, with 38 per cent of the share, and North America increased from 17.8 per cent in 2014 to 18.9 per cent in 2015. The Middle East, Africa and Latin America remained about the same while Europe’s share fell from 9.5 per cent in 2014 to 8.3 per cent in 2015.

Van Stekelenburg is confident about 2016, saying: “My team and I now have our strategy in place for 2016 onwards, supported by a strong mandate from our community to continue with our policy of innovation and industry leadership.”