Latest news with #GlobalBusinessTravelAssociation
CNBC
3 days ago
- Business
- CNBC
Safer to stay home? European firms rethink travel policy over U.S. border control concerns
Some European companies are growing wary about sending their employees to the U.S. It comes amid volatile policymaking by the Trump administration, more stringent immigration checks, and an uptick in reports of detentions and deportations. Some businesses CNBC spoke to, in areas including engineering and accounting, stressed that their work trips to the U.S. continued unabated. But others, usually in more politically sensitive fields, flagged employee welfare concerns. Their responses ranged from issuing new travel guidance — such as advising workers to bring wiped electronic devices or entering the U.S. via Canada — to encouraging attendance at U.S. events or conferences online where possible. Business travel is a significant revenue source for the U.S. economy. According to a report published by the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) last year, total spend in the sector generated a total $421 billion and $119 billion in tax revenue in 2022, the most recent year in which full data was available. That came from an estimated 429.9 million business trips supporting 6 million jobs. Business travel is also a key revenue-maker for the aviation industry, generating between 50% and 75% of profit for airlines in many cases. In a survey of 900 global travel buyers conducted by GBTA in April, 29% said they expected a decline in business travel volume at their companies in 2025 as a result of U.S. policy across both travel and tariffs. The survey also found a decline in overall optimism in the sector. Any chilling effect would also come with international tourism expected to be dented this year, costing $12.5 billion in spending, due to negative perceptions of trade and immigration policy. Border control and foreign visas have been highly charged issues since President Donald Trump took office in January, with reports of tourists being held in detention centres for long periods. The White House pledged in January that all foreigners seeking to enter the U.S. would be "vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible." Relations between the U.S. administration and the academic community have also soured, following moves to pause international student visa issuance and "aggressively revoke" visas for Chinese students, as well as the detention of some foreign students on apparently political grounds. "We're hearing some international travellers have expressed unease about visiting the U.S. due to increased visa scrutiny, social media monitoring, and incidents of detention or deportation despite valid documents," said Prashray Kala, a partner at management consultancy Everest Group. "Those with a visible online footprint are more cautious, especially with the 'Catch and Revoke' policy enhancing surveillance," Kala said. Announced April 30, this policy means that anyone with a U.S. visa will lose their immigration status after one strike for any violation of U.S. law, regardless of severity. One European fund manager who frequently travels to the U.S. for business said he was concerned immigration authorities at airports could hinder his travel plans due to a change in political attitude, rather than policy. "Business travel on an ESTA [visa] is no longer what it used to be", the fund manager said. The head of an international non-government organization with headquarters in London told CNBC that they had devised a new travel protocol for the U.S. The policy goes beyond their usual requirements for information about an employee's movements and contact details, into issues around physical and information security. The NGO produces investigative reports into topics spanning climate change, corporate malpractice and corruption. Employees CNBC spoke to for this story requested anonymity to be able to discuss internal workplace matters. "On one level for us as an organization, that shouldn't really require us to break into a sweat, we do that for lots of places that our staff travel to," the NGO chief executive said. "But from a personal perspective, this is very illuminating — in a not very pleasant way — because these are the sorts of things I think about when I travel to, say, China or Azerbaijan, autocratic regimes. The idea that we would have to apply that approach to travel to the U.S. is something which would never have occurred to me until just a few months ago." Examples include taking "burner" phones or computers only used for the trip, and preparing employees for scenarios in which they are aggressively questioned about their travel intentions or things they have published online, they said. Separately, an academic researcher at a university in Switzerland told CNBC that they had been provided with guidance to ideally travel into the U.S. via Canada where possible, or to attend conferences virtually to avoid any visa complications. They noted that some of their colleagues were still making trips to the U.S. without incident, but others had been questioned at the border for longer, and some had decided not to attend summer academic conferences stateside. Visiting programs to U.S. universities have been particularly affected and even put on hold, they added. All of those CNBC spoke to across a range of industries agreed that the prevailing climate around U.S. travel was one of uncertainty. "There is, of course, a risk of overreacting to this ... ploughing more of our time and resources into preparing for this than actual, tangible risk warrants," the NGO chief said. "There's always this question of how you separate out the outright bluster from what might be substantive and might actually be acted on. I think probably this time around, we take more of the bluster seriously."
West Australian
5 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
Global corporate travel a casualty of Donald Trump's war on trade
Optimism in the global business travel sector has dropped by more than half this year, according to a report published by the Global Business Travel Association. Positive sentiment fell from 67 per cent in November 2024 to 31 per cent in April 2025, according to the report which surveyed more than 900 business travel professionals on the affect of tariffs, tightened border policies and other US government policies announced this year. More than one in four respondents in Canada, the US and Europe said they felt 'pessimistic' or 'very pessimistic' about the industry outlook this year. However, 40 per cent of those surveyed said they felt neither positive nor negative. 'Since I have been in my role for four years, I haven't seen this high of a level of uncertainty,' Suzanne Neufang, the association's CEO, said. The survey showed nearly 30 per cent of business travel buyers anticipate their companies will reduce employee trips this year, while some 20 per cent said they weren't sure, it showed. 'They're not even confident enough to be able to say things will be fine or things won't be fine,' she said. Some 27 per cent of respondents also said they expect business travel spending to decrease as well. A third of business travel buyers said their companies have either changed, or are considering changing, policies regarding travel to or from the US, the report showed. Some 6 per cent said their companies had relocated events from the US to another country. 'From an APAC perspective, and certainly from a European perspective, maybe even LATAM, there's the opportunity to be the source of where these meetings take place,' Neufang said. 'There are many other opportunities to be a winner in this trade game.' Business travel professionals expressed several concerns about the potential for the long-term impact caused by decisions of the Trump Administration this year, led by worries over business travel costs (54 per cent) and problems processing visas (46 per cent). Global airfares, however, are slightly down — about $US17, or 2.2 per cent year-to-date — according to FCM Consulting, a division of the business travel company FCM Travel. Nevertheless, the global business travel market is still on track to top $US1.6 trillion by the end of 2025, Neufang said. However, she said that's only 'if the last 100 days don't impact negatively everywhere'. By 2028, the Global Business Travel Association expects, that number will cross the $US2tr mark, she said. She noted that while business travel volumes haven't returned to pre-pandemic levels, business travel spending fully recovered in 2024, partly as a result of inflation. But she said the trade war initiated by the Trump Administration could spell a bout of new business trips. 'During times of trade wars, business travel may actually increase for at least a period of time — for new partners to be found [and] new markets to be built,' she said. 'You lose a customer, you need to find another one. So I think that perspective doesn't mean all doom and gloom for us.' However, if tariffs remain elevated, 'There will definitely be an impact to U.S. travel ... But I think Europe, Asia, Europe to Asia, Asia to Europe. I think anywhere to Africa, all of those are probably fine.' Leisure travel to the United States has fallen in 2025. International visitor spending is projected to drop 4.7 per cent from 2024, representing some $8.5 billion for the U.S. travel industry, in a year revenues were once widely expected to grow. CNBC
CNBC
5 days ago
- Business
- CNBC
The trade war is rattling global business travel — 4 charts show how
Optimism in the global business travel sector has dropped by more than half this year, according to a report published by the Global Business Travel Association. Positive sentiment fell from 67% in November 2024 to 31% in April 2025, according to the report which surveyed more than 900 business travel professionals on the affect of tariffs, tightened border policies and other U.S. government policies announced this year. More than one in four respondents in Canada, the United States and Europe said they felt "pessimistic" or "very pessimistic" about industry outlook this year. However, 40% of those surveyed said they felt neither positive nor negative. "Since I have been in my role for four years, I haven't seen this high of a level of uncertainty," Suzanne Neufang, the association's CEO, told CNBC Travel Tuesday. The survey showed nearly 30% of business travel buyers anticipate their companies will reduce employee trips this year, while some 20% said they weren't sure, it showed. "They're not even confident enough to be able to say things will be fine or things won't be fine," she said. Some 27% of respondents also said they expect business travel spending to decrease as well. A third of business travel buyers said their companies have either changed, or are considering changing, policies regarding travel to or from the United States, the report showed. Some 6% said their companies had relocated events from the U.S. to another country. "From an APAC perspective, and certainly from a European perspective, maybe even LATAM, there's the opportunity to be the source of where these meetings take place," Neufang said. "There are many other opportunities to be a winner in this trade game." Business travel professionals expressed several concerns about the potential for the long-term impact caused by decisions of the Trump Administration this year, led by worries over business travel costs (54%) and problems processing visas (46%). Global airfares, however, are slightly down — about $17, or 2.2% year-to-date — according to the travel data company FCM Consulting. Nevertheless, the global business travel market is still on track to top $1.6 trillion by the end of 2025, Neufang said. However, she said that's only "if the last 100 days don't impact negatively everywhere." By 2028, the Global Business Travel Association expects, that number will cross the $2 trillion mark, she said. She noted that while business travel volumes haven't returned to pre-pandemic levels, business travel spending fully recovered in 2024, partly as a result of inflation. But she said the trade war initiated by the Trump Administration could spell a bout of new business trips. "During times of trade wars, business travel may actually increase for at least a period of time — for new partners to be found [and] new markets to be built," she said. "You lose a customer, you need to find another one. So I think that perspective doesn't mean all doom and gloom for us." However, if tariffs remain elevated, "There will definitely be an impact to U.S. travel ... But I think Europe, Asia, Europe to Asia, Asia to Europe. I think anywhere to Africa, all of those are probably fine." Leisure travel to the United States has fallen in 2025. International visitor spending is projected to drop 4.7% from 2024, representing some $8.5 billion for the U.S. travel industry, in a year revenues were once widely expected to grow.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Business travel was making a post-Covid comeback — until the trade war diverted it
Business travel's four-year crawl out the pandemic was on track to continue this year, but the U.S. trade war has scrambled that outlook. 'The big word is uncertainty,' said Suzanne Neufang, CEO of the Global Business Travel Association, which had forecast worldwide spending to surge to $1.64 trillion in 2025, up from an expected $1.48 trillion in 2024. Last year's estimated total, if preliminary data bears out, would mark the first time the sector surpassed its pre-Covid levels. But pessimism has risen sharply amid President Donald Trump's deep cuts to the government workforce and a dizzying range of tariffs. Now, about 29% of U.S. corporate travel managers and an equal share abroad expect business travel to decline this year due to government actions, according to a recent GBTA survey. The expected pullbacks could dent business trips by as much as 22%, the group found. Industry experts caution that souring expectations so far haven't translated to a collapse in bookings, despite signs of cooler demand. Business travel 'hasn't fallen off a cliff,' said Jonathan Kletzel, a travel, transportation and logistics leader at the consulting firm PwC. 'It is definitely constrained right now, but will people stop traveling? Probably not. If you're a sales-heavy organization and you're not out in the market meeting with your clients, your competitors are.' Still, growing concerns around business travel coincide with corporate leaders' warnings that U.S. trade policies have injected fresh uncertainty into an economy that just months ago looked on track to build on its strengths. Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC last month that the carrier has had to check its expectations for what was shaping up to be the 'best financial year in our history.' Travel demand was growing about 10% at the start of the year but has since slowed, he said, partly due to companies rethinking business trips and cuts to the federal workforce. Other airlines have flagged similar concerns, in some cases adjusting their growth plans or scaling back capacity. Hotel operators and booking platforms are feeling it, too. Expedia said Friday that U.S. travel demand is cooling. Marriott, Hyatt and Hilton have each reduced their financial forecasts in recent weeks, with the first of those hospitality giants warning investors of 'an expected continuation of declines in U.S. government demand.' Since retaking office, Trump has overseen mass firings and spending reductions across the federal bureaucracy, with many of the changes led by multibillionaire adviser Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency project. While some of the cuts have been halted in court, travel bookers for government contractors have weathered a hectic few months. Global Travel Associates, a Washington, D.C.-area agency that mainly serves government contractors, said travel sales slid 20% in the first quarter. Several had funding tied to the U.S. Agency for International Development, which the Trump administration gutted this spring, and those accounts are down by 75%-90%, Managing Director Tom Ollinger estimated. Some of GTA's clients switched to buying only refundable plane tickets; others canceled scheduled meetings or halted any new travel plans indefinitely, he said. In some cases, those with staffers on long-term assignments overseas were told to drop everything and head back to home base. 'The organization provided them one-way tickets to return,' Ollinger said. 'Government groups are not happening,' said Jan Freitag, national director for market analytics at the real estate data firm CoStar. But many business meetings are still taking place, and while individual business travel is a bit softer, 'that could just be people not booking as much ahead,' he said. However, Freitag cautioned, 'should [more] tariffs hit and corporations have less sense of where their costs are going, they'll start looking to cut costs. And the easiest place to control costs is travel and training.' Navan, a corporate travel management service based in Palo Alto, California, said bookings were up in the first four months of the year from the same period in 2024, despite a slight slowdown in April. 'There's certainly this feeling of waiting for another shoe to drop,' said Rich Liu, Navan's CEO of travel. While CEOs are telling him they're 'feeling the squeeze' from new import taxes and other policy moves, 'they still have businesses to run,' Liu said. Individual business travelers seem to be getting anxious. The online travel insurance comparison site Squaremouth saw a 223% annual surge in searches for 'cancel for work reasons' travel coverage last month, with purchases of those policies jumping 53%. 'That tells us that travelers are feeling uneasy,' said Squaremouth CEO Rupa Mehta. 'In uncertain economic times, they want to understand the cost and value of flexible coverage before committing.' The current outlook is 'a mixed bag,' said Lorraine Sileo, founder of Phocuswright, a global travel research firm. At the moment, 'it looks like leisure travel will be impacted more than business travel,' she said, adding that 'it will take longer for corporations to feel the pinch of an economic downturn' than it will for vacationers. 'We need to take a wait-and-see approach' to see how business trips fare, Sileo said, 'but there are indications that it will be a slow year for all types of travel for the U.S. market in 2025.' This article was originally published on
NBC News
10-05-2025
- Business
- NBC News
Business travel was making a post-Covid comeback — until the trade war diverted it
Business travel's four-year crawl out the pandemic was on track to continue this year, but the U.S. trade war has scrambled that outlook. 'The big word is uncertainty,' said Suzanne Neufang, CEO of the Global Business Travel Association, which had forecast worldwide spending to surge to $1.64 trillion in 2025, up from an expected $1.48 trillion in 2024. Last year's estimated total, if preliminary data bears out, would mark the first time the sector surpassed its pre-Covid levels. But pessimism has risen sharply amid President Donald Trump's deep cuts to the government workforce and a dizzying range of tariffs. Now, about 29% of U.S. corporate travel managers and an equal share abroad expect business travel to decline this year due to government actions, according to a recent GBTA survey. The expected pullbacks could dent business trips by as much as 22%, the group found. Industry experts caution that souring expectations so far haven't translated to a collapse in bookings, despite signs of cooler demand. Business travel 'hasn't fallen off a cliff,' said Jonathan Kletzel, a travel, transportation and logistics leader at the consulting firm PwC. 'It is definitely constrained right now, but will people stop traveling? Probably not. If you're a sales-heavy organization and you're not out in the market meeting with your clients, your competitors are.' Still, growing concerns around business travel coincide with corporate leaders' warnings that U.S. trade policies have injected fresh uncertainty into an economy that just months ago looked on track to build on its strengths. Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC last month that the carrier has had to check its expectations for what was shaping up to be the 'best financial year in our history.' Travel demand was growing about 10% at the start of the year but has since slowed, he said, partly due to companies rethinking business trips and cuts to the federal workforce. Other airlines have flagged similar concerns, in some cases adjusting their growth plans or scaling back capacity. Hotel operators and booking platforms are feeling it, too. Expedia said Friday that U.S. travel demand is cooling. Marriott, Hyatt and Hilton have each reduced their financial forecasts in recent weeks, with the first of those hospitality giants warning investors of 'an expected continuation of declines in U.S. government demand.' Since retaking office, Trump has overseen mass firings and spending reductions across the federal bureaucracy, with many of the changes led by multibillionaire adviser Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency project. While some of the cuts have been halted in court, travel bookers for government contractors have weathered a hectic few months. Global Travel Associates, a Washington, D.C.-area agency that mainly serves government contractors, said travel sales slid 20% in the first quarter. Several had funding tied to the U.S. Agency for International Development, which the Trump administration gutted this spring, and those accounts are down by 75%-90%, Managing Director Tom Ollinger estimated. Some of GTA's clients switched to buying only refundable plane tickets; others canceled scheduled meetings or halted any new travel plans indefinitely, he said. In some cases, those with staffers on long-term assignments overseas were told to drop everything and head back to home base. 'The organization provided them one-way tickets to return,' Ollinger said. 'Government groups are not happening,' said Jan Freitag, national director for market analytics at the real estate data firm CoStar. But many business meetings are still taking place, and while individual business travel is a bit softer, 'that could just be people not booking as much ahead,' he said. However, Freitag cautioned, 'should [more] tariffs hit and corporations have less sense of where their costs are going, they'll start looking to cut costs. And the easiest place to control costs is travel and training.' Navan, a corporate travel management service based in Palo Alto, California, said bookings were up in the first four months of the year from the same period in 2024, despite a slight slowdown in April. 'There's certainly this feeling of waiting for another shoe to drop,' said Rich Liu, Navan's CEO of travel. While CEOs are telling him they're 'feeling the squeeze' from new import taxes and other policy moves, 'they still have businesses to run,' Liu said. Individual business travelers seem to be getting anxious. The online travel insurance comparison site Squaremouth saw a 223% annual surge in searches for 'cancel for work reasons' travel coverage last month, with purchases of those policies jumping 53%. 'That tells us that travelers are feeling uneasy,' said Squaremouth CEO Rupa Mehta. 'In uncertain economic times, they want to understand the cost and value of flexible coverage before committing.' The current outlook is 'a mixed bag,' said Lorraine Sileo, founder of Phocuswright, a global travel research firm. At the moment, 'it looks like leisure travel will be impacted more than business travel,' she said, adding that 'it will take longer for corporations to feel the pinch of an economic downturn' than it will for vacationers. 'We need to take a wait-and-see approach' to see how business trips fare, Sileo said, 'but there are indications that it will be a slow year for all types of travel for the U.S. market in 2025.'
