The revival of tourism is accelerating. Firms in the sector have a strong revival of demand He predicts that the recovery trend will continue through Easter during the high summer season, which has attracted great interest from both Spanish and international tourists so far this year, and will continue until the end of the year, despite the impact of the Russian occupation on Ukraine and the possible inflationary impact. on consumption.
But the big companies in the industry warn that an increase in activity will not translate into an improvement in their profitability as a result of the blow to their calculations of cost overruns caused by runaway inflation (up to 9, 8%). In March, the highest level in almost four decades) and due to the inability of most companies to transfer them to their rates.
“The main concern of the industry right now is not the evolution of the business, but the deterioration of margins,” said Vice President José Luis Zoreda. Excelturlobby that brings together the country’s thirty largest tourist groups (among these, Meliá, NH, Iberia, Globalia, Riu or Amadeus. The war in Ukraine currently has no impact on business (companies estimate that 7.7% of bookings made on Easter are lost, but offset by other last-minute bookings), but profitability. companies due to rising prices.
Exceltur warns that companies in the sector can make transfers by consuming only a quarter of them. operating cost overruns they support 26.3% of the total. Inflation exacerbated by Vladimir Putin’s war has translated into an average increase in fuel costs of 26% for tourism companies, 28% in electricity and gas, and 17% in supplies overall.
The lobby of the big ones in the industry also warns that the rise in prices also leads to a 7.8% increase in salary costs for the sector as an effect of the CPI-linked collective agreements. Given this situation, Exceltur urges major unions and CEOE employers to “reach an agreement to limit wage growth in the tourism sector to: no more hitting the edgescompanies”.
Paradoxically, while the tourism industry seeks to curb price increases, companies warn of the difficulties of finding trained staff. stop of activity Due to the pandemic in the last two years, some companies have not been able to recover some of their lost personnel and have been transferred to other economic sectors.
accelerated recovery
Confidence that demand strength will continue in the coming months despite the war and inflation, Exceltur Revised projections to raise the overall activity forecast for 2022 predict that the tourism sector’s GDP will rebound for the year. 91.6% of pre-pandemic levels, Up to 141.681 million Euros.
The lobby’s estimates, based on non-intensification or geographical spread of war, represent an improvement of 6,000 million more than the previous tourism GDP forecast for 2022, representing a very strong 57% increase over the 2021 figure. powerful improvement, sector’s GDP It is still 13,000 million below 2019 records before the Covid pandemic (€154,738 million).