The local press is full of the global economic downturn and in particularly emphasizes New Zealand’s positive spin ‘that we are in a better position to weather the downturn than most other countries’. The latest visitor nights and inbound tourist arrival data tell a very different story.
New Zealand is not immune to a globalised economic slump as a personal example clearly demonstrates. This blog which like NZ is floating in the world wide web has been a victim to hacking.
Please excuse the present appearance of this blog but unfortunately in the process of ridding the hackers hidden text links within the header template, I have also inadvertently deleted the graphics and other features. Luckily the content is unchanged and the aesthetics can be repaired in time.
How long will it take however for the global economy to rediscover discretionary spending that clearly a far away destination like New Zealand requires to maintain positive growth figures in the tourism sector. It is interesting to note that the only real growth in tourism numbers are coming from our nearest market Australia.
The main concern here is the emphasis of tourism operators in New Zealand who are putting all their eggs in the Australian basket.
The lucky country as the Australians call their home, also has the smug belief that they will experience a limited effect from the global ‘credit crunch’. Unfortunately the economic data from Australia’s main trading partners, Asia and in particularly China paint a different picture. When the crisis hits home to Australians then the NZ operators who have focused on this market will find their problems compounded.
Like the hacking of this web site, there is little that is immune to the forces of globalisation.
Tags: Australia arrivals, New Zealand tourist numbers, Tourist Numbers
Long haul air travel is also widely promoted as heavy carbon users in today’s global warming climate.