LONDON, March 20 — Globetrotters were on the move last year, as a newly released report found that the travel industry made up nearly 10 per cent of the global economy in 2013, and is expected to grow even stronger this year.

According to the 2014 Economic Research Impact report out of the World Travel & Tourism Council, the global travel industry grew for the fourth consecutive year, outpacing the wider economy in key sectors such as retail, financial and business services, transport and manufacturing.

The report singled out Southeast Asia as the global leader, with economic growth pegged at nearly 8 per cent, and employment growth at 4 per cent.

Of all the G20 countries, Indonesia emerged the fastest-growing travel and tourism economy in 2013 at 8.4 per cent.

Tropical getaways such as Bali, Sumatra and Java have made the world’s largest archipelago an increasingly popular destination for pleasure seekers.

Predictably, China is expected to post the highest growth of any G20 country this year, at 8.3 per cent.

International visitor spending overall on business, leisure and transport also rose — by 4 per cent to US$1.3 trillion (RM4.3 trillion).

Spending also increased notably in Southeast Asia, rising 10.2 per cent over the previous year.

Who’s doing much of the spending? Chinese, Russian, Brazilian, Indonesian, Turkish and Egyptian travellers abroad.

Where are they spending their hard-earned cash?

According to the report, they’re spending in countries such as the US, the UK, Thailand, Hong Kong, Turkey, Japan, Greece, Russia and Indonesia.

“...2013 has been a really good year, with strong demand from long-haul markets,” said WTTC CEO David Scowsill, who added that projections for 2014 looked even “sunnier”, with rising incomes and falling unemployment rates in many countries spurring spending. — AFP/Relaxnews