U.S. travel industry forecasts moderate growth for 2013

The U.S. Travel Association projected moderate increases in leisure, business and international inbound travel next year will enable the industry to add 98,800 new U.S. jobs by the end of 2013. Leisure travel is expected to rise 1.2 percent, business travel is projected to increase nearly one percent and international inbound travel will increase four percent.

Domestic travel: Domestic leisure travel is expected to increase 1.2 percent in 2013, slower pace than during the past few years. While business travel volume will slow significantly next year to less than one percent, the number of business trips has grown steadily since the downturn in 2009 and is expected to see more positive growth in 2014. Total domestic travel spending, including leisure and business travel, will increase three percent.

International inbound travel: Total will increase four percent in 2013 while spending will grow 7.1 percent. Overseas travel to the U.S. (excluding Canada and Mexico) will grow 4.3 percent, a slight decrease from last year’s growth of 4.8 percent. While the numbers continue to trend upward, any slowdown in travel growth is of concern because overseas travelers contribute significantly more to the U.S. economy, spending an average of $4,300 per trip.

Full forecast numbers from USTA below:

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