'Trump slump’ continues as number of tourists to US falls by 1.4 per cent

Analysts say international arrivals have continued to decline consistently since President Trump’s travel ban back in January

Travel to the US has been on the decline since Trump's proposed travel ban (AP)

The fall in travel to the US, dubbed “Trump slump”, following President Trump’s controversial proposed travel ban in January 2017 has continued, according to analysts.

Experts at ForwardKeys, which predicts future global travel patterns by analysing more than 17 million booking transactions a day, claim that international air arrivals to America have dropped by 1.4 per cent in total between 27 January and 30 September 2017 compared to the same period last year.

ForwardKeys’ analysts say there is a correlation between the first travel ban, in which President Trump announced that those from certain Muslim majority countries should not be allowed to enter the United States, and the decline of international visitors to the US.

The proposed ban also coincided with the strengthening of the US dollar, making it a more expensive prospect as a holiday destination.

European travel to the States, which makes up 39.4 per cent of the US tourism market, has dropped by 2.3 per cent according to ForwardKeys’ data, while Asia Pacific, which has a 23 per cent market share, has declined by 3.8 per cent.

This decrease comes at a time when international arrivals as a whole across the world have increased by 4.6 per cent, rising consistently while America’s tourism figures have steadily fallen.

However, there has been growth from some markets – namely Central and South America and Africa, the latter of which has a 2.1 per cent market share.

“Our latest detailed findings confirm what our data has been predicting since the first travel ban,” said ForwardKeys co-founder and CEO Olivier Jager. “There has been a Trump Slump and the strong dollar has compounded it.

“This must be worrying for the US economy – travel is a huge earner for the United States and relative to the rest of the world, its tourism exports are losing ground.

“Whilst disappointed for the USA by the latest travel data, we are relieved that the quality of our analysis last April, which was heavily questioned at the time, has been vindicated.”

Tourism has doubtless been further impacted by other factors, such as the devastation wrought by Hurricane Irma in September and the attack on a Las Vegas festival by a gunman in October, which left 58 dead and 489 injured.