According to a new report, the Asia-Pacific travel industry may be the only one in the world to recover by 2023.

According to this year’s “Travel & Tourism Economic Impact” report, published by the London-based World Travel & Tourism Council, tourism revenue in 2020 will drop more in Asia-Pacific (59 per cent) than anywhere else.

In 2021, recovery efforts in the region were muted, with most countries maintaining strict border controls. The contribution of tourism revenue to regional GDP increased by about 16 per cent, compared to 28 per cent in Europe and 23 per cent in North America.

According to the report, Asia-Pacific is expected to close the gap this year, with travel revenue contributing to the overall economy increasing by 71 per cent.

Travel in the Asia-Pacific region is on the rise this year, with restrictions first eased in India and Australia, then Malaysia, Thailand, and other Southeast Asian countries, and most recently Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan in the north.

According to the WTTC report, the Asia-Pacific travel industry will continue to grow in 2023, followed by another year of growth in 2024.

It estimates that by 2025, travel revenue will contribute 32% more to the region’s GDP than it did before the pandemic — a figure far exceeding that of any other region except the Middle East (30 per cent).

According to the report, the global economy will grow at a 2.7% annual rate from 2022 to 2032. During the same time period, however, tourism’s contribution to the global economy is expected to grow at a 5.8% annual rate, according to the report.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism contributions to GDP in Asia-Pacific are expected to grow at an average annual rate of 8.5%.

According to the WTTC, the global travel industry will add 126 million new jobs over the next decade. According to the report, approximately 65% of this will be in Asia-Pacific.

According to the WTTC, China and India will account for just under half of the new jobs.

Tourism job growth is expected to be significant in Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines over the next decade, with 5.3 million, 3.5 million, and 3.15 million new jobs added, respectively.

According to the report, if China continues to restrict international travel, Asia’s ability to fully recover by 2023 may be jeopardized.

On the sidelines of the Communist Party’s 20th National Congress on Sunday, Chinese President Xi Jinping said the country’s dynamic zero-Covid policy had yielded “positive results,” but he did not say whether the policy would be changed.

To stem recent case increases, officials have closed Shanghai entertainment venues and schools in the central Chinese city of Xi’an, as well as placing millions of its citizens under new lockdowns.

(Adapted from CNBC.com)

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