CARLSON Wagonlit Travel (CWT) and GBTA Foundation have jointly launched 2015 Global Travel Price Outlook, which indicates that there is upward pressure on rates, particularly in high-demand travel markets.
Driving this is demand from emerging markets such as China, India and Brazil as well as improved economic growth in advanced economies, combined with limited advances in travel supply.
For Asia-Pacific (APAC) markets, key findings for 2015 include:
• APAC is expected to see the smallest increases in airfares around the world (0.5 per cent) compared with the global average of 2.2 per cent;
• Actual airfare increases for 2014 were lower than forecast, given that low-cost carriers (LCCs) have added a lot of capacity and are increasingly targeting the corporate travel market. LCCs now account for close to 26 per cent of total capacity in APAC;
• Air price growth in India is expected to be the strongest (at 4.4 per cent), driven by recent elections and prospects for market reforms that could lead to greater levels of business activity and a higher volume of business travel;
• Hotel prices are expected to grow 2.7 per cent – a moderate rate compared to the rest of the world; and
• India is expected to experience hotel price growth for the first time in several years (at 4.4 per cent), driven by higher levels of business confidence following this year’s elections, while in China, travellers can expect to see a minor increase in hotel prices.
Joseph Bates, GBTA Foundation vice president of research, said: “The study reveals that travel managers expect price increases next year across the board on travel categories including airfares, hotel room rates and rental car rates.
“Risks to the forecast including the escalating Ukrainian crisis; declining European inflation; burgeoning debt in China and oil price shocks could potentially have a negative influence on travel demand and pricing however, so travel managers are advised to consider contingencies for these risks in their planning.”
To view the full report for results worldwide, visit http://www.carlsonwagonlit.com/en/global/insights/global-forecast-2015/index.html.
