WTTC sees International Travel Resume by June this year

1. WTTC research reveals global Travel & Tourism sector suffered a loss of almost US$4.5 trillion in 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19

2. Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to GDP plunged a staggering 49.1% in 2020

3. Job retention schemes look to have saved millions of jobs – but the threat remains

WTTC has not lost its faith in the recovery of the International Travel and Tourism Industry and releases its Economic Impact Report (EIR) today indicating a road to recovery, and its hope for international travel to resume by June, in just 2 1/2 months.

How realistic this is with a deadly third wave attacking Europe and Brazil waits to be seen.

Some may think it would be too good to be true, but the WTTC CEO Gloria Guervara needs to be applauded to keep her optimistic outlook alive.

The report reveals the full devastating impact of COVID-19 had on the global Travel & Tourism sector last year, which suffered a massive loss of almost US$4.5 trillion.

The annual EIR from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, shows the sector’s contribution to GDP dropped a staggering 49.1%, this compared to the overall global economy which dropped by just 3.7% last year.

Vast losses run up during 2020, paint the first full picture of a sector struggling to survive in the face of crippling travel restrictions and unnecessary quarantines, which continue to threaten the urgent recovery of the world economy.

Altogether, the sector’s contribution to global GDP plummeted to US$4.7 trillion in 2020 (5.5% of the global economy), from nearly US$9.2 trillion the previous year (10.4%).