U.S. Business Travel Industry is Driving GDP Growth
06/28/2024
In a new study released this month, the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), reports that the business travel industry was responsible for a major boost to the U.S. economy in 2022 – the latest full year the data is available. The study, “GBTA U.S. Economic Impact Study: Business Travel’s Impact on Jobs and the U.S. Economy,” quantifies the significant economic impact work travel in the country.
Key highlights from the study include:
- The U.S. spent the most on business travel in 2022, totaling $421.1 billion USD and resulting in $119 billion in tax receipts.
- For every 1% of growth in business travel, the U.S. economy sees nearly 60,000 jobs, $2.9 billion in paid wages, $1.2 billion in tax revenue and $4.8 billion in new GDP.
- Business travel also supported 6 million jobs and represented 3.5% of total employment.
- Of the direct jobs supported by business travel, 38% were in food services, 19% in accommodations and 11% in transportation and warehousing.
The GBTA’s latest industry forecast also project the U.S. to be a top one or two market worldwide for spending again in 2024.
Additionally, the study provides data on U.S. business travel in 2022 overall, including:
- 9 million total business trips were taken within the U.S.
- An estimated 67% of trips were taken for transient purposes: sales, client service, government and military travel, and travel for construction or repair. The remaining 33% represents conference and event travel.
- Business travelers are traveling longer for each trip: 4.1 days in 2022 (versus 3.3 days as cited in 2017 GBTA research).
- The amount spent per business trip averaged $632, with 34% spent on lodging ($214), representing the largest single category for spending.
Visit GBTA’s website for further details, and click here to download the complete study.
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