A new report details the devastating impact the COVID 19 pandemic has had on the travel industry, specifically airlines.

The world travel and tourism council’s annual economic impact report shows a loss of nearly four point five trillion dollars last year.

The sector’s contribution to G-D-P sank almost 50 percent.

The industry was soaring in 2019….generating one in four new jobs around the world.

But when the pandemic hit, more than 62 million jobs were lost…almost 20 percent of those in the industry.

If travel resumes by June- the W-T-T-C predicts jobs would steadily return next year.

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Economic Impact Reports

Alongside our Insights reports, WTTC produces reports on the economic and employment impact of Travel & Tourism for 185 countries and 25 geographic or economic regions in the world. These reports are a vital tool in helping us to equip public and private sector bodies with hard evidence of the huge value Travel & Tourism brings to the economy, so that their policymaking and investment decisions support our sector.

WTTC’s latest annual research, in conjunction with Oxford Economics, shows the Travel & Tourism sector experienced 3.5% growth in 2019, outpacing the global economic growth of 2.5% for the ninth consecutive year. Over the past five years, one in four new jobs were created by the sector, making Travel & Tourism the best partner for governments to generate employment.

In 2019, Travel & Tourism’s direct, indirect, and induced impact accounted for:

• US$8.9 trillion contribution to the world’s GDP
• 10.3% of global GDP
• 330 million jobs, 1 in 10 jobs around the world
• US$1.7 trillion visitor exports (6.8% of total exports, 28.3% of global services exports)
• US$948 billion capital investment (4.3% of total investment)