MACAO, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) -- Macau International Airport (MIA) registered strong performance in 2018 with passenger flow and aircraft movements all growing significantly, the airport said here on Thursday.

In 2018, MIA welcomed 8.26 million arriving and departing passengers and handled over 65,000 aircraft movements, representing an increase of 15 percent and 12 percent respectively year-on-year, the airport said in its latest performance report.

The airport said the achievement came from the joint efforts and cooperation among its business partners, and Macao's government policy to integrate into the development of Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and to build up Macao into a World Center of Tourism and Leisure.

The opening of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge also contributes to the growing passenger flow, it added.

There were 27 airlines operating at MIA in 2018, connecting Macao to some 51 destinations covering the Chinese mainland, China's Taiwan, Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia. The passenger traffic from routes of the Chinese mainland, Southeast and Northeast Asia accounted for 37 percent and 41 percent of the total passenger volume.

The report also said in 2018, MIA expanded the air network by adding 10 new international routes.