The U.S. Travel Association is calling on the Biden administration to enhance efforts to boost international visitation to the U.S. amid a declining trade surplus.
Citing new data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the organization points out that the trade surplus dropped to just $4 billion last year, down from an all-time high of $85.9 billion in 2015.
In response, U.S. Travel is now calling for urgent federal action to rebuild inbound travel and reverse the disconcerting trade surplus trend.
One of the steps outlined is taking further action to lower visitor visa interview wait times, which continue to exceed an average of 400 days for first-time applicants in the top 10 visa-requiring inbound markets.
U.S. Travel is also urging the government to end the COVID-19 vaccine requirement for international visitors to the U.S. and address inefficiencies in the air travel system as part of the upcoming Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization.
"Travel has historically generated an annual trade surplus that meaningfully reduced the U.S. trade deficit," U.S. Travel President and CEO Geoff Freeman said in a statement. "The latest trade data is a wake-up call for immediate federal action to boost this essential industry and increase travel exports to benefit the entire U.S. economy."
The US travel trade surplus slipped to just $4 billion in 2022. (photo via US Travel Association)"It's no coincidence that the industry's highest trade surplus occurred at a time when the federal government was making a concerted effort to increase inbound travel," added Freeman. "Facilitating more inbound travel-and effectively lowering the overall trade deficit-should be a top economic priority for the Biden administration."
The Biden administration previously set a goal of attracting 90 million international visitors and $279 billion in spending annually by 2027.
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