FYI Miami: July 2, 2026

AIR PASSENGER GAIN: Although Miami International Airport passengers declined through the first five months of this year on the heels of a dip in 2025, in May the airport saw a small gain from May 2025, up 0.52% in passengers. The gain was entirely in international flyers, who were up 3.52% from May 2025. With that gain, international passenger traffic at the airport is up 0.21% for this year. Domestic flyers, however, continue to dip, down 1.75% in May from May 2025 and down 1% for 2026 to date. That leaves combined international and domestic flyers down 0.47% for 2026 with a total of 23,787,165 passengers so far this year. A predicted jump of 1.2 million added flyers for seven world cup matches could lift totals above last year’s level by the end of July.

AIR CARGO KEEPS SOARING: Air cargo tonnage, which rose 13.61% last year at Miami International Airport, continues to build on those gains. Through the first five months of this year, cargo tonnage has risen another 11.6%, with international tonnage rising 11.93% this year and domestic up 9.86%. In May alone, cargo tonnage at the airport rose 9.15% over the totals of May 2025. Of this year’s total tonnage, 84.5% has been international cargo.

WORLD CUP BONANZA: Tri-Rail had its highest Saturday ridership ever last week, more than 11,000 trips on the day of the World Cup match between Portugal and Colombia at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. The World Cup has boosted use when the system loses students during summer break. Tri-Rail averaged just under 14,000 weekday rides in June, yet the two weekdays when World Cup matches were held saw big increases. Monday, June 15, saw more than 15,000 passengers, and on Wednesday, June 24, the system had nearly 17,000 rides.

JOBLESS RATE FALLS: After four consecutive months of rising unemployment in Miami-Dade, the unemployment rate fell a half percentage point in May to 2.6%, figures released last week by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reveal. That’s exactly what unemployment was in Miami-Dade a year earlier. The county’s unemployment rate is far below that of Florida as a whole, which in May was 4.8%. The bureau reported 37,132 county residents unemployed in May, down from 44,650 in April. Unemployment in the county was 2.4% in December, 2.6% in January, 2.8% in February, 2.9% in March and 3.1% in April. Nationally, the unemployment rate in May was 4.3%.

These are some of the FYIs in this week’s edition. The entire content of this week’s FYIs and Insider sections is available by subscription only. To subscribe click here.