BUSINESS NEWS WTTC Global Summit 2025: Council hails a ‘booming’ industry at Rome forum. By Ian Taylor


‘Sector does not wait for world to settle – it adapts’


WTTC interim chief executive Gloria Guevara told the summit in Rome: “So much is happening in the world yet travel and tourism is booming everywhere. “The sector does not wait for the


world to settle, it adapts.” Guevara noted the sector is


“not just growing, [but] outpacing every other sector”, saying: “One in every three jobs created since the pandemic has been in travel and tourism. Before the pandemic it was one in four.” She argued: “The future of travel


is not something we’re waiting for. We’re creating it. Yes, there are challengers, but they are not roadblocks.” Guevara avoiding mentioning


the current US administration and said two challenges “stand out” on “talent and technology”. She said: “We need to be able to fill jobs, and AI is helping cut waiting times and driving efficiency, but adoption is uneven. Collaboration is the answer – between public and private,


government and business.” Q Current WTTC chief executive and president Julia Simpson was unable to attend the summit due to illness. Guevara was her predecessor.


Gloria Guevara


WTTC warns global travel industry will struggle to fill 91m new jobs


The WTTC estimates travel and tourism will support the creation of 91 million jobs worldwide in the next 10 years but warns the industry faces a shortfall of 43 million employees. A Future of the Travel & Tourism Workforce report,


Airport worker


launched at the WTTC summit, suggests that by 2035 one in three of all new jobs will be in the sector. But it warns the industry will


struggle to fill up to 16% of posts in a decade’s time, with hospitality facing a shortage of 8.6 million workers or 18% of the total. The forecasts are based on projections across 20 major economies. China faces the largest shortfall


of almost 17 million workers, followed by India on 11 million and the EU 6.4 million. But Greece could see 27% of tourism jobs unfilled, Germany 26% and Japan 29%. The report argues low-skilled jobs


remain critical to tourism and are the most sought-after by employers, along with service roles and those requiring human interaction.


UK remains global travel player Ian Taylor


The UK’s travel and tourism industry remains the fourth-largest in the world by contribution to GDP, according to the latest World Travel & Tourism Council economic impact report. The WTTC report, released


ahead of the council’s Global Summit in Rome this week, estimates travel’s contribution to UK GDP at $383 billion this year – behind the US on $2,575 billion, China ($1,904 billion) and Germany ($542 billion) – with the industry’s value growing from $367 billion a year ago. The Economic Impact Research


Trends report ranks France ($298 billion) in sixth place, Spain ($283 billion) in seventh, and Italy ($258 billion) in 10th.


travelweekly.co.uk The top 10 is completed by Japan


in fifth place on $324 billion, Mexico in eighth ($281 billion), and India ninth ($269 billion). France remains the world’s most-visited destination and Spain the second-most visited. The WTTC noted the UK


“maintained its position as one of the strongest and most dynamic markets worldwide despite losing £2.2 billion [in] international visitors’ spending”. WTTC interim chief executive


Gloria Guevara said: “These results tell a story of strength and opportunity. We’re forecasting our sector will contribute $2.1 trillion in 2025, surpassing the previous high of $1.9 trillion in 2019.” However, the WTTC estimates


international visitor spending in the US will fall by $12.5 billion this year, resulting in growth of just 0.7% in


the sector’s contribution to GDP, and it warned the US “could lose its competitive edge without destination promotion, traveller-friendly policies and reduced visa costs”. By contrast, it forecasts the value


of China’s travel industry will grow by almost 23% this year. The report notes travel and


tourism “is growing faster than the consumer goods sector”, producing a “jobs boom” across the world. It estimates the industry supported 357 million jobs in 2024, with numbers to rise to 371 million this year and to one in eight jobs worldwide by 2035. The WTTC reports investment


in the sector exceeded $1 trillion worldwide in 2024, up almost 10% year on year, with the US, China, Saudi Arabia and France accounting for more than half the total.


9 OCTOBER 2025 63


Trevi Fountain, Rome


PICTURES: Shutterstock/muratart, Olena Yakobchuk


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