All over the world, in exports, more than $300 billion has been lost from international tourism. This signifies international tourist spending following travel restrictions to lessen the virus spread, according to a new report.
Report published by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), it mentions that worldwide from January to May, there were 56 percent fewer international tourists compared to the same time in 2019. In exports from tourism, this drop in international travel created a loss of $320 billion, or three times more than what was lost bank in 2009 due to the financial emergency situation.
In late 2019, after originating in Wuhan, China, COVID-19 began spreading worldwide. Almost every country got affected and imposed restrictions in travel to alleviate the spread, thereby creating massive drop in international tourism.
The Asia-Pacific region was hardest hit section in the world, with a 60 percent slump in overseas tourists, followed by Europe (58 percent), the Middle East (52) and the Americas (47), according to the report.
In May, the UNWTO published a similar report that highlighted three scenarios of the way international travel has a possibility to change from May until December, including a slow border reopening followed by easing of travel restrictions in July, September and December 2020. It was suggested in that report that under the explained scenarios, the world could possibly lose 850 million to 1.1 trillion international tourists, 100 to 120 million direct tourism jobs, and $910 billion to $1.2 trillion in export revenue from tourism.
Tags: International tourism, Report
