UNWTO sees increasing confidence in recovery for tourism sector in 2010

The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has said that it believes the conditions of the tourism market are starting to indicate stronger prospects for a recovery in 2010. These include macroeconomic upward revisions from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) together with preliminary international tourism figures until August this year. This suggests some moderation in the declining results of the first half of this year.

In addition, the UNWTO Panel of Experts Confidence Index reflects stronger confidence in market conditions. International arrivals declined by four per cent in July this year, a relative improvement when compared to decreases of ten per cent in May and seven per cent in June. Many destinations show a similar pattern of a gradual change for the better, particularly in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

The negative trend in international tourism that emerged during the second half of 2008 intensified in 2009 under the impact of the rapid deterioration of the world economy, combined in various destinations with the effects of H1N1 Influenza (swine flu) outbreak this spring.