Strong passenger demand on Asian and North American routes helped Cathay Pacific and Dragonair post a combined 6.4 per cent increase in passenger numbers last month.
The two carriers flew 2.41 million passengers in June, up from 2.27 million a year earlier.
But cargo and mail volumes fell 5.4 per cent to 127,698 tonnes last month, down from 134,980 tonnes in June last year, as the industry continued to suffer from slowing trade.
Cathay said passenger numbers climbed 8.6 per cent to 14.31 million in the first six months, while cargo and mail volumes dropped 9.8 per cent to 753,901 tonnes.
The growth in passengers outpaced the increase in capacity, which grew 3.5 per cent in June and 6.9 per cent in the first six months.
General manager, revenue management James Tong Wai-pong said: 'Our flights were busy in June in the build-up to the summer peak season. Passenger volumes rose more than the increase in capacity, which shows the demand is there, but we continued to see yield coming under pressure in all cabins last month.'
The airline expected to see high passenger loads - a measure of utilisation of the available capacity - on most routes over the summer peak.