GENEVA, March 28: International air travel continued to expand in February, growing by 6.8 per cent compared to the same month last year, the top airline industry association said on Wednesday.

“Passenger demand continues to exceed expectations,” Giovanni Bisignani, director-general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said in a statement.

Global international passenger growth a month earlier reached 6.1 per cent on a year-on-year basis, and averaged 5.9 per cent for the whole of 2006.

The Middle East continued to lead the pattern of growth in February with an 18pc increase in passenger travel, IATA said.

African demand was boosted by 9.4 per cent, followed by Europe (7.4 per cent), North America (6.8 per cent) and Asia (5.7 per cent).

Global air freight slowed for the eighth month in a row, however, with a growth rate of 2.4 per cent in February.—AFP