The launch of Apple’s newest iPhone won’t just be a boon to upstream manufacturers of chips and high-resolution displays or downstream accessories. The iPhone 6 is expected to give the international air cargo market, which recently has been flat, a strong boost.

The International Air Transport Association reported tonnage increased just 1.4 per cent last year after falling the previous year. Profit is forecast to double this year from 2012.

International Air Cargo Association vice chairman Enno Osinga told the South China Morning Post (SCMP)  that last year “we had a boost from both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, which lasted three months”.

The city of Zhengzhou last year produced 96 million of the 150 million iPhones shipped worldwide, according to the SCMP.

No surprise then that the city’s cargo airport is the country’s fastest-growing. Traffic was up 120 per cent in the first seven months of the year.

High-end electronic products are a key revenue generator for air cargo operators.