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| Hospitality Today | June / July 2016
The hospitality & tourism market
International tourism rose by 4 % last year
International tourism receipts in destinations around the world grew by 3.6 % in 2015 , in line with the 4.4 % increase in international arrivals . For the fourth consecutive year , international tourism grew faster than world merchandise trade , raising tourism ’ s share in world ’ s exports to 7 % in 2015 . The total export value from international tourism amounted to US $ 1.4 trillion .
Income generated by international visitors on accommodation , food and drink , entertainment , shopping and other services and goods reached an estimated US $ 1,232 billion ( euro 1,110 billion ) in 2015 , an increase of 3.6 %. International tourist arrivals ( overnight visitors ) increased by 4.4 % in 2015 to 1,184 million .
China , the United States and the United Kingdom led outbound tourism last year , fuelled by their strong currencies and economies . China continues to lead global outbound travel after double-digit growth in tourism expenditure every year since 2004 . Spending by Chinese travellers increased 25 % in 2015 to reach US $ 292 billion , as total outbound travellers rose 10 % to 128 million .
Tourism expenditure from the world ’ s second largest source market , the United States , increased by 9 % in 2015 to US $ 120 billion , while the number of outbound travellers grew by 8 % to 73 million .
Other latest figures out from the Office for National Statistics show that the first three months of 2016 have set a record for inbound visits to the UK . The figures show visits from January to March were up 6 % on the same period last year to 7.36 million , with visitors spending £ 3.64 billion .
Inbound tourism is worth more £ 26 billion to the UK economy .