Bengaluru, May 5 (IANS): Global air freight grew 5.3 percent year-on-year (YoY) in the first quarter of calendar year 2015, International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Tuesday.

"Freight performance in the first quarter of the year is in line with general economic trends and higher than 4.5 percent YoY growth anticipated in our December outlook," said IATA in a statement from Geneva.

IATA represents 260 airlines worldwide and account for 84 percent of global air traffic.

The growth in March was, however, a modest 1.6 percent YoY rise in volumes when measured in freight tonne kilometers.

"The March performance is in contrast to the exceptionally strong 12.2 percent rise in February when growth was skewed by the combined impact of the Lunar New Year and the labour dispute on the US west coast seaports," the statement said.

Carriers in the Middle East grew rapidly while their counterparts in Europe and Latin America contracted during the quarter under review.

"The air cargo industry is on a solid but unspectacular growth trend. There is little evidence that would point towards an acceleration as the year goes on," IATA chief executive Tony Tyler said in the statement.

Calling on governments to work in partnership and remove trade barriers, the association said growth in air cargo markets had lowered.

"World trade and air cargo are growing but only in line with industrial production. Removing trade barriers in line with the WTO (World Trade Organisation) facilitation agreement (FTA) will deliver a much needed boost to the global economy," Tyler added.

The World Economic Forum estimates that the WTO TFA could boost the global economy by as much as $1 trillion.