Freight volumes traditionally increase in the weeks leading up to the holiday, which last year occurred later in February.
"The air freight business remains a difficult one. February's performance continues a weak trend. And there are few factors on the horizon that would see this change substantially," IATA Director General Tony Tyler said in a statement.
Demand for air freight, measured in freight tonne kilometres, dropped by 5.6 percent in February, IATA said in its monthly traffic data.
Available capacity rose 7.5 percent in the month, meaning that load factors - how full planes are - shrank by 5.7 percentage points to 41.0 percent.
(Reporting by Maria Sheahan)
