The Spanish tourism industry is the ninth largest in the world
Figures recently published by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) show that the tourism sector’s contribution to the Spanish economy increased by 2.4 per cent in 2018 to EUR 178,000.
Spain’s national economy grew even more, but tourism accounts for only 14.6 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). In addition there are 2.8 million people in the tourism industry (14.7 per cent of all employment).
The tourism economy in Spain was the fifth largest in Europe last year and the ninth largest in the world, behind the United States, China, Japan, Germany, the UK, Italy, France and India.
Gloria Guevara from WTTC highlights the strong growth of what tourists spend in Spain and the healthy balance between international and domestic tourism (55/45) a relationship that is particularly conspicuous compared to Europe, as a whole, with (35/65) and world tourism (29/71). On the other hand, she identifies the corporate tourism sector as the only one where there are significant opportunities for improvement. It currently accounts for only 12 percent of tourism in Spain, while the average for Europe is 21 percent.
WTTC holds its annual global meeting in Seville on April 3 to 4.
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