Atlas Air Executive: Air-Cargo Demand 'Soft' In Feb, Picked Up In March

A top Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc. (AAWW) executive said Wednesday that air-cargo demand was soft in February but picked up in March, voicing optimism for the remainder of the year.

"We see a strong outlook for air-freight demand," coupled with tight supply of space on large cargo jets, through 2011, Chief Financial Officer Spencer Schwartz said, speaking at a J.P. Morgan conference.

"We anticipate steadily improving results (for Atlas Air Worldwide) throughout each of the quarters this year," he said.

Industrywide, however, Schwartz described February as "a bit of a soft month" for air-cargo demand overall.

He chalked up the trend partly to the arrival of Lunar New Year in early February this year, which typically shutters factories in China for a week or more. He also noted that a high-profile design issue with an Intel Corp. (INTC) chipset slowed some manufacturing, and thus air-cargo shipments, in February.

Still, he was upbeat overall, saying March has shown improvement and the overall air-cargo demand outlook is solid for 2011.

He noted in response to an audience question that Atlas Air's operations in Japan haven't experienced disruptions in the wake of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in the country.

Atlas has a contract with Boeing Co. (BA) to fly some parts for that company's new 787 Dreamliner aircraft out of Japan to its Everett, Wash., factory, and it also flies materials for U.S. military facilities in the Asian country. But Schwartz said the operations are relatively far removed from impacted areas.

He also said business from Japan accounts for only a small slice of Atlas Air's revenue.

-By Bob Sechler; Dow Jones Newswires; 512-258-1690; bob.sechler@dowjones.com

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