SINGAPORE - Changi Airport handled 4.25 million passengers in September, a slight 0.5 per cent drop against the same month a year ago.

During the month, traffic to South Asia and North-east Asia grew by 11 per cent and 2 per cent respectively, but other regions, including South-east Asia and Africa recorded lower passenger numbers, Changi Airport Group said on Monday.

There has been no pick-up in the demand for flights to China and Thailand either.

The China market has been hit by both political instability in Thailand and the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 in March, which was carrying mainly Chinese travellers.

Singapore has been affected, as Chinese tourists who visit South-east Asia typically cover all three countries.

In the first three quarters of this year, Changi recorded just over 40 million passengers, 0.9 per cent higher than the January-September total last year.

Aircraft movements moved in tandem, growing by 0.6 per cent to 255,260. During the same period, cargo shipments totalled 1.37 million tonnes, a year-on-year growth of 0.3 per cent.