Spain's Tourism Faces Economic Slowdown Amid Weaker Visitor Spending

Spain's tourism industry is witnessing a notable slowdown, attributed mainly to a dip in spending by European and U.S. visitors. This development is set to affect the nation's overall economic growth, according to industry group Exceltur.

Exceltur has revised its expectations, predicting a 2.8% growth in all tourism-related activities for 2025. This is a downgrade from the 3.3% growth estimated in July, and a significant drop from the 5.5% expansion seen last year. Consequently, tourism will now contribute 13.1% to Spain's GDP this year, lower than the initial forecast of 13.5%.

The number of international tourists might fall short of the 100 million mark predicted by the World Travel and Tourism Council. By August this year, 66.8 million tourists had visited Spain, showing a 3.9% increase from the previous year. Despite the rise, spending growth has decelerated, affecting businesses across the tourism sector.

(With inputs from agencies.)