China’s civil aviation sector posted strong growth in October, driven by a surge in international passenger travel and robust cargo demand, official data showed on Tuesday.

Total air transport turnover reached 14.6 billion ton-kilometers in October, with international passenger and cargo volumes both expanding by more than 20 percent year-on-year.

Domestic airlines transported over 60.8 million passengers in October, up 4.4 percent, while international routes handled 6.99 million, a rise of 20.4 percent.

Cargo and mail throughput hit a monthly record of over 900,000 tons, including 518,000 tons on domestic routes, up 8.1 percent, and 399,000 tons on international services, surging 21 percent.

From January to October, China’s civil aviation sector handled 136.63 billion ton-kilometers of transport, up 10.3 percent year-on-year.

Passenger traffic grew 5.3 percent, fueled by a 23.2 percent jump in international passenger flows.

During the 10-month period, cargo and mail volumes rose 13.9 percent from the same period last year.