Fri | Mar 29, 2024

Global tourism losses may exceed US$1.2 trillion

Published:Wednesday | July 1, 2020 | 12:18 PM
In this Sunday, May 10, 2020, people walk among folded beach umbrellas dotted on an empty stretch of "Nissi beach" in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, a seaside resort that's popular with tourists from Europe and beyond. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

The global tourism industry will lose at least $1.2 trillion this year amid crippling travel restrictions and consumer wariness during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report Wednesday from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

The losses, equal to 1.5% of the world economy, could balloon to $3.3 trillion if the hit to international leisure travel persists until March 2021, with the harshest effects afflicting developing and island nations, according to the Geneva-based agency’s report.

The collapse of tourism could cost Jamaica 11% of its gross domestic product and reduce Thailand’s GDP by 9%, UNCTAD said.

Other hot spots like Kenya, Egypt and Malaysia could lose more than 3% of their GDP, the report said.

The lost revenue may translate into a sharp rise in unemployment in those countries with the potential for wages to drop by 12% in Thailand, 11% in Jamaica and 9% in Croatia.

Wealthier nations with more diversified economies like France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the US also stand to lose billions of dollars in tourism revenue, the report said.

Source: Bloomberg

Follow The Gleaner on Twitter and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.