Financial Times: Europeans cancel trips to the US
RT on April 13 quoted a source from the Financial Times saying that the US is witnessing a sharp decline in the number of tourists coming from Europe amid increasing political tensions and concerns about hostile acts at the border under President Donald Trump.
Mr Trump has taken a hardline approach to global affairs, recently imposing a series of new tariffs on US trading partners. Although he has suspended these tariffs for most countries for 90 days, China was not exempted. Since then, Washington and Beijing have continued to retaliate with successive rounds of tariff hikes, causing shockwaves in global stock markets.
According to Mr. Paul English - co-founder of travel website Kayak shared with FT, Mr. Trump's policies have damaged the confidence of consumers around the world.
"In just two months, Trump has damaged America's reputation, as evidenced by the sharp decline in EU tourism to the US," English said. "This is not just another blow to the US economy, but a reputational damage that could take generations to repair."
The number of overnight visitors from Western Europe to the United States fell 17% in March compared to the same month last year, with arrivals from countries such as Ireland, Norway and Germany down more than 20%, according to the International Trade Administration (ITA).
Several European countries have updated their travel advisories, warning of increased risks when traveling to the US.
Total international arrivals to the US fell 12% in March – the sharpest decline since 2021, when the tourism industry was still affected by pandemic-related travel restrictions, according to data from ITA.
According to the Financial Times, this downward trend is a threat to the US tourism industry – which accounts for about 2.5% of the country's $29 trillion GDP.
Oxford-based research firm Tourism Economics has lowered its 2025 forecast for international arrivals to the US by 18% from its previous estimate, predicting a 9.4% decline after Trump announced the “Liberation Day” tariffs last week. Negative sentiment, border policies, unfavorable exchange rates and economic uncertainty are all expected to hurt the US tourism industry.
Mr. Adam Sacks – President of Tourism Economics noted that Mr. Trump's harsh statements aimed at Canada, the EU and Greenland have "seriously affected the psychology of the US, and consequently tourism activities."
The US president has repeatedly called for the annexation of NATO allies such as Canada and the Danish territory of Greenland since taking office.
