NBTA: China, India to Outpace U.S. in Business Travel

The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) and Egencia, Expedia Inc.'s travel arm, have released some of the findings from a study enumerating spending by global businesses on travel. Business travel is anticipated to grow in all regions over the next five years, but some regions are expected to experience stronger growth than others. Global business travel spending reached $929 billion in 2008 and is projected to exceed $986 billion by 2013. Over the past decade, North America's business travel has grown at an average rate of just two percent per year. Western Europe grew at 4.6 percent annually, with Asia growing at an average of 7.2 percent. According to the study, growth of business travel in the U.S. will stagnate from 2009 to 2013, growing at a mere 0.3 percent per year and significantly outstripped by projected growth rates of 6.5 percent annually in China and 5.3 percent in India. North America, Western Europe and Asia Pacific each account for about 30 percent of global business travel, including domestic and international. The U.S. accounts for the largest chunk of business travel spending at 28 percent, followed by China at 10 percent and Japan at 8 percent. —Chris Nesi