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Singapore expects moderate growth in tourism sector in 2013

Singapore is likely to have missed its 15 million international arrivals in 2012 and predicts moderate growth rates in 2013.

SINGAPORE- Singapore expects its tourism receipts for 2013 at about 24.5 billion Singapore dollars (US$ 19.6 billion) and its visitor arrivals at least 14.8 million, according to a recent statement of S. Iswaran, the city-state’s Minister in Prime Minister’s Office. According to earlier estimate by the country’s tourism board, Singapore expected 23-24 billion Singapore dollars (18.4-19.2 U.S. dollars) in tourism receipts and 13.5-14.5 million visitor arrivals for last year. It expects moderate growth in its tourism sector this year. Official data for the entire year are still missing but according to estimates running on January to October 2012, total international arrivals would be up by over 9% to 14.4 million travellers.

Global tourism growth is moderating and visitor arrivals to Singapore cannot continue to grow at the rates seen in recent years, the minister said in a statement.

According to a biennial report released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), Singapore ranked first in Asia in terms of the travel and tourism industry competitiveness. It ranked tenth among all 140 countries and regions all around the world. The report is said to use a combination of data from publicly available sources, international travel and tourism institutions and experts.

“Domestically, our land and manpower constraints mean we need to find new ways to do more with less. The next phase of tourism growth would then come from yield increase through higher visitor’s spending, rather than just visitor numbers. And this transformation and change is timely because externally, the expected rise in Asian tourism over the coming years presents a window for us to attract discerning travellers who seek out differentiated and value-added experiences,” Iswaran added during his statement to members of Singapore Parliament.

(Source: Xinhuanet)

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Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.

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