World tourism declines 8% – UNWTO
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According to the June edition of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, international tourism declined by 8% between January and April compared to the same period last year. Destinations worldwide recorded a total of 247 million international tourist arrivals in those four months, down from 269 million in 2008. Given the changes in the outlook UNWTO has revised its forecast for full year 2009. Taking account of the results for the first four months of the year and the current market conditions, international tourism is now forecast to decrease by between -6% and -4% in 2009, as the pace of decline is expected to ease during the remainder of 2009. The months May-August are projected to see the rate of decline slow to between -6% and -4%, with September-December between -5% and -3%.
With the exception of Africa (+3%), all global regions recorded a decrease in arrivals for the first four months of 2009. For Asia and the Pacific, the decline in the first four months of 2009 (-6%) has been faster than expected and is particularly severe when compared to results from recent years. Although the decline in the Middle East is significant (-18%), the UNWTO stated that complete data is not available and that arrivals are still expected to be well above the 2007 levels.
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