AUSTRALIAN TOURISM STRUGGLE CONTINUES

25 July 2002

New figures reveal Australia's tourism industry continues to be hit by major events of last year as well as global economic uncertainty with overall arrivals dropping by five per cent for the first six month this year.

Speaking following the release of the Australian Bureau of Statistics, June 2002 preliminary figures, Australian Tourist Commission Managing Director Ken Boundy said the figures show a 11 per cent drop in visitors for June, a five per cent fall for the six months to June 2002 and a six per cent drop for the 2001/02 year. 

"There were around 2.3 million international visitors in the first six months to June 2002 - a drop of around 131,000 visitors so far this year," he said. "This equates to around $430 million in lost export revenue -- a significant impact on tourism operators Australia-wide. 

"The figures indicate the initial recovery forecast following the events of September 11, was optimistic with arrivals from key markets continuing to be impacted. 

"A number of key factors continue to hamper the return to growth for inbound arrivals including economic difficulties and air capacity constraints. At the same time we are facing an increasingly competitive environment, a shift in travel to short-haul destinations and an overall shrinkage in the travelling public. 

"Feedback from industry indicates conditions for the September 2002 quarter will be soft. Inbound arrivals are expected to improve in the last quarter this year, however it is unlikely that official forecasts of 4.7 per cent growth for this year will be reached. 

Mr Boundy said visitors from Europe were down by three per cent in the six months to June 2002, with the UK the only market to record an increase in arrivals (up 2 per cent) during this time.

"UK visitors fell by 26 per cent for the month of June, a direct result of the British Lions Rugby Union tour (which travelled to Australia in June 2001) as well as the impact of the Soccer World Cup on travel from this market," he said.

"Visitors from Germany, our second largest market in Europe fell 13 per cent in the six months to June 2002. The general travel market in Germany remains soft and is not expected to improve over the next few months.

"Industry feedback suggests the overall outlook for inbound arrivals from Europe is more positive, particularly the UK, with forward bookings expected to improve in the fourth quarter. However, the state of the northern hemisphere economies will play a role in outbound travel from this region. 

"The figures show around 218,200 US visitors in the six months to June 2002, a drop of 8 per cent compared to the same time last year. Factors including the decline in air capacity on the US-Australia route and the recent shocks on the US stock market will continue to impact on outbound travel. 

Mr Boundy said there were mixed results across Asia, with China and Korea continuing to buck the trend, recording growth in arrivals (up 14 per cent and 5 per cent respectively for the six months to June 2002). 

"Arrivals from Japan continue to show signs of improvement, with arrivals up by two per cent in June, the second consecutive month of growth," he said. "There are also indications that Australia has increased it's share of outbound travel from Japan, with the trend expected to continue. 

"However, visitors from a number of markets in the Asia region, including Taiwan (down about 18 per cent in the six months to June 2002) continued to decline."