It has been suggested that those visiting the yearly WTM (World Travel Market) meeting in London are wise to do so. Among other things it is a place where the global intelligence firm Euromonitor International always launches its Global Trends Report forecasting the upcoming trends in the tourism industry.
It is absolutely no secret that economies are slowing down on a global scale and that the whole world is currently in a state of financial uncertainty. However, perhaps the most surprising revelation of the Report was that even the upcoming nations and emerging economies are not immune to the current negative atmosphere of the current economical climate.
World economic growth is to slow down to 3.9% this year and to 3% next year. Those present first hand at the output of some information are, logically, best equipped to survive in the tourism sector.
Airlines are the hardest hit by the global financial crisis, mostly due to soaring fuel prices. This explains the emergence of discounts for business travellers.
Other conclusions and suggestions resulting from the Report were quite interesting. Most parties agreed that it is necessary to take environmental and social responsibility when doing business in tourism. The growth of ‘philanthropic tourism’ is a remarkable trend now especially in the North America.
Much of the stress of the Report was also placed on the development of new tourism superpowers such as China and India. These two countries, along with Brazil and Russia are bound to be at the head of many agendas of up-to-date tour operators.
