Singapore Airlines (SIA) has welcomed a 1.3 percent increase in passengers carried over December last year compared to the same month 2010.

According to statistic released by the airline this week, passenger load factor from the Americas picked up by 4.2 points from 76.9 percent to 81.1 percent while load factor from East Asia fell 4.6 points from 83.4 percent in December last year to 78.8 points December 2011.

The airline’s low-cost carrier, Silk Air contributed to the passenger count increase, with a 6.2 percent rise over December 2010 from 275,000 passengers to 292,000 passengers during the same month last year.

Overall cargo and commercial passenger capacity shot up 3.5 percent for the month compared to the corresponding period the prior year from 1.9 million to two million.