Spain-season starts with the highest tourist arrivals in History

Spain-season starts with the highest tourist arrivals in History 

Tourism remains the only economic activity that ensures good news for the Executive. In 2013 highs were achieved at the entrance of foreign visitors (63.6 million) and expenditure made during their stays (45,000 million) and data from the first part of the high season for optimism.

Minister of Industry, Energy and Tourism, José Manuel Soria, has advanced (official statistics made ​​public on Friday) that July was the second best month ever tour in Spain, as reflected in the increase in 5, 9% of international arrivals, surpassed only by August 2013 Specifically, pending that advanced by Soria in July confirming data would have reached 8.29 million visitors, which together with the 6, June 58, would total 14.87 million tourists in the first two months of the season, 4.9% more than in the same period of 2013 and a record high.

After chairing a meeting of the PP in the Canaries, Soria also highlighted the strong performance of the UK and France, the first and the third most important market. In July, the arrival of British tourists have grown by 4.6% compared to 3.4% in the same month last year, and the French would have done 12.4%, well above the 2.2% a year earlier. In this unprecedented increase would have played a decisive role near the coast of Catalonia and the Pyrenees to France, which would have been used by a large number of Frenchmen to reach by car. Proof of this is that Catalonia snatches the first position achieved by the Balearic Islands in June. Both are consolidated as the two most visited autonomy, since between the two would add more than 50% of arrivals until July.

Amid such positive news, the negative aspect is provided by Germany, the second country that emits more tourists to Spain (16.6% of total), which would have recorded an annual decline of 1.1%, which related to the slowdown Soria economy that is registered in the German country. Data released last week by Eurostat revealed that the GDP of the German economy, the largest of the EJU the world's most exported third, would have fallen by 0.2%.

Soria said that in the first seven months of the year Spain had received 36.3 million international tourists, up 6.7% and a new record. If the growth trend continues with whom he could close the year, given the good prospects of operators that handle hiring in the coming months, Spain could well exceed the 63.6 million who arrived in 2013.

The minister did not advance any data on spending, a variable in the first seven months has behaved far worse than arrivals. If the latter grew by 6.7%, total expenditures to June only rose 3.9% and the average expenditure per tourist would have risen just 0.5%, with a very uneven performance by markets. The largest increase would have occurred in the USA, one of the markets where visitors spend more money during their stays, up 11.9%. On the other side stood France, the third largest in the average spending fell 5.2% and stood at 564 euros compared to 940 on average.

http://cincodias.com/cincodias/2014/08/21/economia/1408627917_038875.html