In U.S., spending by international visitors dropped nearly 1 per cent to $198.8 billion as per World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). There was lack of growth in visitors from China which contribute 11 per cent of all spending in U.S. After stellar growth across 10 years, international visitor numbers from China were flat year on year It is caused in part by the deteriorating trade relations between the two countries.
Gloria Guevara, the council’s president and CEO said: “Given the economic importance of Chinese visitors, any thawing in the trade relations between the two countries would have a positive effect for the wider U.S. economy.”
The toursim sector contributes nearly U.S. dollars 1.6 trillion to the country’s gross domestic product, or 7.8 percent of the total. The WTTC said the contribution grew 2.2 percent year-over-year, adjusted for inflation. U.S. remains the world’s largest travel and tourism economy.
The United Nations World Tourism Organization data in January showed that the global tourism arrivals grew by 6 per cent in 2018. However, North America saw international arrivals increase by mere 4 per cent.
AS per WTTC 79.9 million international visitors came to the United States in 2018. The figures are expected to increase to 82.5 million in 2019. Of the visitors in 2018, 3 per cent were Chinese.
The global tourism group released recommendations for the U.S. that include renewing of Brand USA, expanding and renaming the U.S. Visa Waiver Program; updating airports and other infrastructure; and embracing biometric passenger identification.
