The number of bags lost or delayed by U.S. airlines continues to climb, with a daily average of 14,089 in August, the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics said Wednesday.

It was the worst month for baggage-handling since December 2004 when massive problems with US Airways' baggage handling over the holidays caused a spike in lost baggage reports.

For every 1,000 passengers in August, 8.08 bags were reported lost or delayed, up from both July's rate of 6.5 and the August 2005 rate of 6.4.

The Canadian Transportation Agency does not collect comparable statistics as federal laws do not require Canadian airlines to report lost luggage numbers.

Trouble in the U.S. was partly the result of a ban on liquids and gels in carry-on luggage after an alleged plot to bomb U.S.-bound jetliners was foiled in Britain. Passengers who normally carried their luggage began checking it to avoid having their toiletries confiscated by security screeners.

"The increased number of bags being checked resulted in more mishandlings," said David Castelveter, spokesman for the airline trade group Air Transport Association.

The ban was lifted six weeks later after officials decided small amounts of liquids and gels could be carried aboard airplanes if they were put in a quart-size plastic bag.

But the trend is for more bags to be lost, stolen, mishandled or damaged. The number of mishandled bags was 23 per cent higher in 2005 than in 2004.

Kevin Mitchell, president of the Business Travel Coalition, said seasoned business travellers anticipated bag-handling problems during the busy summer months.

He blamed short staffing and strapped baggage-handling systems.

"I don't think anyone is surprised," Mitchell said.