The U.S. will see significant losses this year in many important overseas markets. In fact, the U.S. stands to lose market share in eight of the top ten overseas tourism generating countries. Market share from Venezuela will drop the most, falling nearly 13 percent in 2003, followed by Brazil (-9.3%). The U.S. will also lose market share from Argentina, Australia, Belgium, China, Colombia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland and Taiwan.

�The MSI is an important tool for the U.S. travel industry to measure their potential market. The U.S. remains a top destination for many international travelers, but as the number of travelers worldwide grows each year, a smaller percentage of them are choosing to visit our country,� noted William S. Norman, president and CEO of the Travel Industry Association. �This is the real challenge facing our industry and a reminder of why it�s vital to have an ongoing campaign to market the U.S. internationally.�

Offsetting the bad news in market share loss, the U.S. is expected to gain market share from Austria, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Mexico, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Of the 25 markets examined, Sweden and the United Kingdom will show the biggest increases in 2003, both rising more than six percent over 2002. Market share from the two largest sources of travelers to the U.S., Canada and Mexico, will increase just slightly, rising one percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.

These data are from the recently updated MSI Online, the web-based interactive version of TIA�s popular Market Share Indicator report. Part of TIA�s International Visitor Information System (IVIS), MSI Online is a powerful search mechanism that allows users to customize tables and graphs of 10 years worth of historical data, for the 25 countries that generate the most travel to the U.S. In addition, the Market Share Indicator report includes short-term forecasts for all indicators. Indicators cover outbound and long-haul travel volume, and U.S. inbound arrivals, as well as economic background information for each country. MSI Online also includes written analyses for the top countries.
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Travel Industry Association of America
TIA (www.tia.org) is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the $529 billion travel industry. TIA�s mission is to represent the whole of the U.S. travel industry to promote and facilitate increased travel to and within the United States.
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Contact:
Cathy Keefe (Manager, Media Relations)
202-408-2183
ckeefe@tia.org , www.tia.org