Which has higher air transport, freight, Hong Kong, China or Japan?

Hong Kong, China, at 8,638 million ton-km against 8,474 million ton-km in Japan as of 2023.

What is the difference in air transport, freight between Hong Kong, China and Japan?

164 million ton-km, with Hong Kong, China ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Hong Kong, China and Japan?

27 years are reported by both, from 1997 to 2023.

Where does this data come from?

Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), published as Air transport, freight (million ton-km). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Hong Kong, China vs Japan: Air transport, freight

Hong Kong, China

8,638 million ton-km

in 2023

Japan

8,474 million ton-km

in 2023

Hong Kong, China rank

7th

Japan rank

8th

Air transport, freight over time

Hong Kong, China
Japan

How they compare

Hong Kong, China currently reports 8,638 million ton-km against 8,474 million ton-km in Japan, a difference of 164 million ton-km.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 27 shared years of data; in 1997 it was Japan ahead.

Hong Kong, China ranks 7th and Japan ranks 8th of 180 countries.

Across the 4 decades both report, Hong Kong, China averaged higher in 1 and Japan in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Hong Kong, China	Japan	Difference	Ahead
1990s	3,674 million ton-km	7,748 million ton-km	4,074 million ton-km	Japan
2000s	7,700 million ton-km	8,560 million ton-km	859.9 million ton-km	Japan
2010s	10,965 million ton-km	8,472 million ton-km	2,494 million ton-km	Hong Kong, China
2020s	6,438 million ton-km	9,238 million ton-km	2,800 million ton-km	Japan

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher air transport, freight, Hong Kong, China or Japan?: Hong Kong, China, at 8,638 million ton-km against 8,474 million ton-km in Japan as of 2023.
What is the difference in air transport, freight between Hong Kong, China and Japan?: 164 million ton-km, with Hong Kong, China ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Hong Kong, China and Japan?: 27 years are reported by both, from 1997 to 2023.
How do Hong Kong, China and Japan rank globally for air transport, freight?: Hong Kong, China ranks 7th and Japan ranks 8th of 180 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), published as Air transport, freight (million ton-km). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Hong Kong, China vs Japan: Air transport, freight. Statizoid, drawing on Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://infrastructure.statizoid.com/compare/air-transport-freight-million-ton-km/hong-kong-sar-china/japan/

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About this data

Indicator: Air transport, freight (million ton-km)
Unit: million ton-km
Source: Civil Aviation Statistics of the World, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 227 places, 9,773 data points, 1970–2023
Last refreshed: 03 September 2026

Air freight is the volume of freight, express, and diplomatic bags carried on each flight stage (operation of an aircraft from takeoff to its next landing), measured in metric tons times kilometers traveled.