The seven airports within the Greater Bay Area (GBA) handled over 230 million passenger trips and 9.72 million tonnes of cargo and mail in 2025, representing a historical high.
The GBA airport cluster, which includes the three core hubs of Hong Kong International Airport, Guangzhou Baiyun Airport, and Shenzhen Baoan Airport, as well as airports in Zhuhai, Macau, Huizhou, and Foshan, collectively connects to over 200 global destinations.
“The robust demand for air travel and logistics is supported by the GBA's remarkable economic scale and dynamic global connections,” state news agency Xinhua reported.
Hong Kong International Airport, the world's busiest cargo airport, handled 61 million passenger trips in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 15 percent. Its full-year cargo volume grew to 5.07 million tonnes, a year-on-year increase of 2.7 percent.
Guangzhou Baiyun Airport achieved a historic milestone with passenger throughput reaching 83.59 million trips and cargo and mail volume hitting 2.44 million tonnes, both setting new all-time highs.
Shenzhen Baoan Airport's passenger throughput was 66.49 million trips, and its cargo volume reached the 2-million-tonne mark.
At the same time, airports in Zhuhai, Macau, and Huizhou also recorded year-on-year growth in cargo and mail throughput of 15 percent, 1.08 percent, and 25 percent, respectively.
The GBA's economic volume is expected to exceed 15 trillion yuan in 2025, after reaching 14.79 trillion yuan in the previous year. This surpasses the New York and San Francisco bay areas and places it in the top tier of global economic scale alongside the Tokyo Bay Area.
Meanwhile, the report describes the aviation hub cluster as essential to the GBA manufacturing-led trade pattern of "buying from the world and selling to the world."
Qi Qi, an associate professor at Guangzhou Civil Aviation College, pointed out that the GBA has a high concentration of high-value-added industries, such as semiconductor chips, biomedicine, core components for new energy vehicles, and high-end consumer electronics, which have high demands for efficient air logistics.
Cross-border e-commerce platforms such as Shein and Temu have also contributed to a huge demand for customized logistics models, including "e-commerce dedicated routes" and "air charter services."
The report also points out that innovative policies and services such as "Fly-Via-Zhuhai-HK," "Northbound Travel for Hong Kong Vehicles," and intermodal transfer connections have enhanced the efficiency of sea, land, and air transport between the hub airports.
Additionally, the Xinhua report noted that rapid growth in international passenger numbers, driven by China's expanding visa-exemption policies, has also boosted the air network within the GBA.
The number of foreign nationals entering China visa-free through Shenzhen Airport in the first 11 months of 2025 saw a substantial year-on-year increase of 133 percent, while Baiyun Airport opened or enhanced service on nearly 40 international routes.
Hong Kong International Airport also further expanded its aviation network, adding 30 new destinations globally, including Abu Dhabi and Brussels.
