WTTC: global tourism sector regains 95% of its pre-pandemic contribution to GDP

27-04-23

The global tourism sector has recovered 95% of its contribution to GDP in 2019, a year in which the sector was at record highs, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council's (WTTC) Annual Economic Impact Report.

The WTTC estimates that the sector will account for 9.2% of global GDP this year. A total of 34 of the 185 countries surveyed have already surpassed pre-pandemic levels in terms of their contribution to GDP. WTTC forecasts that, by the end of 2023, almost half of the 185 countries will have fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels or be within 95% of full recovery.

Furthermore, according to research conducted by WTTC in collaboration with Oxford Economics, the sector is also forecast to recover to 96% of 2019 employment levels, with 24 million new jobs being generated this year.

Last year, despite economic and geopolitical difficulties, the Travel & Tourism sector's recovery continued gradually, growing by 22% compared to 2021.

This recovery accounted for 7.6% of the global economy in 2022, the sector's largest contribution since 2019, although its contribution to global GDP was still 22.9% below that year's levels.

The research shows that the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and prolonged travel restrictions imposed by several countries such as China had a significant impact on the global sector's recovery.

From its pre-pandemic peak of more than 334 million jobs in the global tourism sector, the pandemic led to losses of more than 70 million jobs, resulting in 2020 ending with only 263 million people employed.

However, thanks to the staggered travel recovery, 295 million jobs, or one in 11 jobs worldwide, could be reached by 2022.

In 2022, foreign visitor spending grew by a record 82% to reach US$1.1 trillion, demonstrating that international travel is on track for a solid recovery.