UNWTO reports mixed results among largest tourism source markets for 9M2019

UNWTO reported (11-Dec-2019) mixed results among the largest spending tourism source markets over the first nine months of 2019:

• US (+6% year-on-year) led growth in international tourism expenditure in absolute terms, supported by a strong USD;
• China, the world's top source market, saw outbound trips increase by 14% in 1H2019, though expenditure fell 4% compared to 9M2018;
• India and some European markets also performed strongly, though global growth was more uneven than in 2018;
• France (+10%) reported the strongest increase among the world's top ten outbound markets, reflecting surging demand for international travel for the second consecutive year. Spain (+10%), Italy (+9%) and the Netherlands (+7%) also posted robust growth, followed by the UK (+3%) and Russia (+2%);
• Some large emerging markets such as Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Argentina reported declines in tourism spending this period, reflecting recent and ongoing economic uncertainty. [more - original PR]