Heathrow Airport has announced a 3.8 per cent rise in passenger numbers in January, compared to the previous year.
In its monthly figures Heathrow confirmed 5.8 million passengers passed through the airport in January.
Increased demand for flights to China and Mexico contributed to the rise.
The figures showed seats per aircraft increased 1.4 per cent and passengers per aircraft increased 2.2 per cent to 144.5.
BRIC passengers were up 5 per cent, compared to January 2013, with China up 26 per cent and Brazil up 6.8 per cent. The MINT countries (Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria and Turkey) were up 5.8 per cent, with Mexico seeing the largest increase of 26.8 per cent on the previous year.
Heathrow CEO Colin Matthews said: “January’s traffic figures reflect a strong start to the year and the increasing demand for long-haul routes to emerging market destinations, such as Chengdu and Mexico City that only a hub airport can support.”