Business Travel Spending to Grow 7% in 2011

ABC News: Business travelers are forecast to spend $245.8 billion this year, up nearly 7 percent from 2010, thanks to improving economic conditions and increasing corporate confidence, an industry trade group said Tuesday. That prediction is $6.5 billion better than an outlook released in January, and growth is expected to continue at least through 2012.

"These are very heartening signs. Business travel spending is coming back at robust levels, indicating the shape of things to come — namely more travelers on the road, an improving economy and a positive environment for continued job growth," Michael W. McCormick, executive director of the Global Business Travel Association said in a statement.

Spending picked up at the end of 2010, with business travelers taking 113.6 million trips during the fourth quarter. They spent $60.6 billion, up more than 12 percent from the same period in 2009. For the first quarter of 2011, preliminary numbers show that travelers spent $60.2 billion, up 4 percent from the year before.

Half of this year's spending growth will come from more expensive airfare, hotels, car rentals and meals. The average business trip in 2010 cost $533, according to the group. For 2011, it is expected to climb 3.4 percent to $551. Pricier international travel is also growing faster than domestic trips.

While the industry is concerned about the higher price of oil, the association said it would not derail travel. If oil hits $150 a barrel, the group expects business travelers to spend $5.8 billion, or 1.5 percent less and make 700,000 fewer trips during 2012 and 2013. A scenario at $200 a barrel would lead to an expected loss of $9 billion in spending and 2.7million fewer trips but would not stop the overall growth in travel, the association said.

Business Travel to Japan Shutting Down

USA Today: With concerns about radiation spreading beyond northern Japan following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent nuclear crisis, corporate travelers and companies are canceling trips to Tokyo and other cities, forcing airlines to cut flights and leaving travel agents to hustle for last-minute changes.

Yasu Kambe, manager of Amnet, a New York-based travel agency that specializes in corporate travel to Japan, says "about 95%" of his clients' trips to Japan in the next month have been canceled. Its sister agency, Tabit, which handles leisure travel, has also seen 60% to 70% cancellations. "It's just too much," he says.

Meanwhile, multinational employers with large exposure to Japan, including InterContinental Hotels and Honda's U.S. headquarters, are following the U.S. State Department's lead by prohibiting trips to Japan for non-essential employees.

Richard Catalano of Cleveland, an anti-bacterial wipes manufacturer, was scheduled to fly to Tokyo last Friday, but was hesitant about the trip for much of last week. Radiation and aftershocks didn't worry him as much "as getting stuck" there, he says. "I don't want to base my decision on what I see on TV." Still, the State Department's decision last week to evacuate dependents of U.S. government personnel spooked him enough. On Thursday, he called off the trip. "I figure if the State Department is evacuating, it's time to postpone," he says.

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