Lufthansa’s group passenger numbers rose 12 percent year-on-year in July, helped by renewed confidence in Europe and Asia, and consolidation of BMI.

The group carried 7.2 million passengers last month — up from 6.4 million a year earlier. Although last year’s figure was lowered by industrial action.

The inclusion of BMI added 757,000 passengers to the total group figure, but the company said both Lufthansa and Swiss saw marginal increases in passenger levels.

The group’s passenger load factor increased to 83.1 percent from 82.9 percent a year earlier. Excluding BMI, last month’s load factor would have been 83.4 percent.

The Lufthansa brand alone experienced a 0.2 percent rise in demand in Europe and 1 percent rise in the Asia-Pacific region. However numbers fell 2.1 percent in the Americas.

However Lufthansa Cargo fared worse, experiencing a decline of 4.8 percent in July freight and mail as the global downturn continues to see a softening in demand.