SYDNEY, 7 March 2025: Global travel management company Corporate Travel Management (CTM) has published its second Global Corporate Travel Trends Report, highlighting the corporate travel industry’s performance in 2024.
The report reveals robust growth across key travel metrics, highlighting the resilience and expansion of the corporate travel industry. Air travel capacity is above 2019 levels. Business travellers are flying longer distances, booking lead times are extending, and average daily rates (ADRs) for accommodation are beginning to plateau globally.
Air travel rebounds: Increased capacity and stabilised fares
The global corporate air travel market has entered a period of sustained growth, with air capacity now 3% above 2019 levels and 6.4% higher than in 2023.
Airlines are scaling operations to meet the growing demand, particularly in major corporate travel hubs where full-service carriers have expanded networks. Record aircraft orders and over 1,600 new
aircraft deliveries expected in 2025 signal continued investment in fleet expansion to meet demand.
Top three corporate travel routes for CTM customers in 2024
The top travel routes for CTM customers were:
1. London – New York
2. London – Hong Kong
3. Sydney – Melbourne
The Sydney–Melbourne route surpassed Hong Kong–Tokyo in the January–June 2024 Global Corporate Travel Trends Report.
Corporate travellers flying further
Corporate travellers covered greater distances in 2024 than before the pandemic, and stabilised airfares in most regions provided corporate travel managers with greater budget certainty following sharp price increases in 2023.
British business travellers led the trend globally, flying further than any other nation compared to 2019. India’s rapidly growing corporate travel market also experienced a significant increase in travel
distances compared to 2019, with North America emerging as a key destination.
French business travellers also saw significant distance increases due to government-imposed sustainability restrictions on domestic air travel in 2023.
Australian business travellers who stayed closer to home in 2023, have returned to flying longer, surpassing 2019 distances.
Average miles flown by travellers
• United Kingdom: 3,821 miles (vs. 3,737 in 2023, 3,329 in 2019)
• United States: 3,011 miles (vs. 2935 in 2023, 2,822 in 2019)
• Australia: 2,826 miles (vs. 2,635 in 2023, 2,745 in 2019)
Airfare and booking trends
Following steady price increases since March 2020, global airfares entered a downward trend in 2024. Economy fares declined more sharply, while business class fares maintained a consistent trajectory. This softening suggests a potential market correction following the substantial price recovery period of the previous two years. International airfare pressures with increased competition boost capacity to meet rising demand. Similarly, North America witnessed stabilisation in airfares with airlines adding transpacific and transatlantic capacity. International airfares in Asia declined due to price corrections from supply shortages during the pandemic. In Europe, strong corporate and premium leisure demand and limited seats drove up international business-class fares.
View the full 2024 Global Corporate Travel Trends Report
