Chinese Business Travel Will Continue Growth

beijingAt the current growth rates, China will pass the U.S. by 2014 to become the country with the highest level of business travel spending one year earlier than previously anticipated, according to the Global Business Travel Association's (GBTA) new report on China. Chinese business travel spending remains one of the highest in the world, second only to the United States, GBTA says.

The GBTA's BTI Outlook – China, a semi-annual analysis of the business travel market, sponsored by Visa, notes that while China’s economy has seen a recent setback driven by European woes, Chinese business travel will continue to show strong growth over the next 18 months. 

Highlights of the new report include:

·         Total business travel in China is predicted to grow by 12.5 percent in 2012 to $195 billion USD, followed by another 14.7 percent in 2013.

·         Domestic business travel will grow by 12.8 percent in 2012. It is expected than in 2013, domestic spend will grow 14.6 percent reaching $213 billion USD.

·         International outbound travel (IBO) in China is forecast to slow considerably reaching only 5.5 percent growth for 2012, compared to 12 percent in 2011. This slowdown in growth can be attributed in part to a significantly lower demand for Chinese exports, particularly in the U.S. and Europe, GBTA said.

Visit www.GBTA.org