Dubai International Airport set a new monthly passenger record in July, handling more than 8 million travelers, according to a Dubai Airports report.
Passenger numbers for July reached 8,065,789, up from 7,616,792 in the same month last year, an increase of 5.9 percent. For the first seven months of the year, the airport recorded 51,120,057 passengers, a rise of 6.2 percent compared with the same period last year.
South America was the fastest-growing region for the airport in July, with traffic to the continent increasing by 59 percent. Asia grew by 20 percent, led by strong contributions from China and Thailand. Eastern Europe accounted for 16.3 percent of the growth, while Africa registered growth of 9.1 percent.
India remained the single largest destination market, with 1,028,508 passengers. The U.K. followed with 610,151 passengers and Saudi Arabia with 573,170. The most popular destination cities were London, Kuwait City, Mumbai, Bangkok and Riyadh.
“We have started the second half of the year on a very positive note and with the Islamic festival of Eid Al Adha coinciding with the summer rush later this month, the upward trend is expected to remain strong in the third quarter,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports.