19/06/2009 - Foreign spending in UK holds firm
Even though the UK has suffered a drop in foreign tourist numbers, the actual amount spent by overseas visitors is holding up well, new figures show.
Meanwhile, the first part of 2009 has seen UK residents spend far less on overseas trips than they did in the same period last year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) data.
In the first four months of this year, foreign residents made a total of 8.91 million overseas visits to the UK - a 10% reduction on the figure for January to April 2008. But over the same period, spending by overseas visitors to the UK fell by just 1%, to stand at £4.42 billion.
Sandie Dawe, chief executive of national tourism agency VisitBritain, said "These are stronger figures than we have seen for the start of the year and further evidence that a weak pound has indeed drawn increasing numbers of visitors to Britain.
"However, sterling is already recovering against key currencies, so we cannot rest on our laurels and, as we enter another summer season, must continue to drive awareness of Britain's appeal and why they should visit now."
Copyright © Press Association 2009
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