International air passenger demand in July dropped dramatically year-on-year by 91.9%, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced Tuesday.

Demand saw a slight recovery from the previous month, having posted a 96.8% annual decline in May, the IATA said in a press release.

"Capacity plummeted 85.2%, and load factor sank 38.9 percentage points to 46.4%," it added.

Reopening the aviation market in the Schengen Area contributed to international demand in Europe, but other global markets posted slight changes in July compared to June, it noted.

IATA CEO Alexandre de Juniac said: "The crisis in demand continued with little respite in July. With essentially four in five air travelers staying home, the industry remains largely paralyzed."

"Governments reopening and then closing borders or removing and then re-imposing quarantines does not give many consumers confidence to make travel plans, nor airlines to rebuild schedules," he added.

The press release also showed that domestic air traffic was down by 57.5% in July, after a decline of 68% in June.

Since originating in China last December, the pandemic has infected millions of people and claimed hundreds of thousands of lives globally.

Measures to stem the coronavirus hit several sectors deeply, especially travel, aviation, tourism and manufacturing.