US Lost Business Travelers in April as Economic Anxiety and Border Detentions Cooled Demand
Source: US News and World Report/AP
May 15, 2025, at 2:22 p.m.
Business travel to the U.S. fell 9% in April as companies and workers grappled with economic uncertainty and anger over the Trump administration’s tariffs and border policies. The National Travel and Tourism Office released preliminary figures Thursday showing the number of airline and ship passengers who entered the country last month using business visas.
The Middle East was the only region that saw higher business travel to the U.S., with arrivals up 9.4% compared to April 2024. But that didn't make up for big losses from other regions; the number of business travelers from Western Europe fell 17.7%, for example.
The new government data didn't include people coming from Canada for business or who traveled by land from Mexico. Mexican arrivals by air for those holding business visas were down 11.8%, the government said.
And overall travel from Canada also fell in April. According to Statistics Canada, Canadian residents' return trips by air from the U.S. fell 20% in April, while return trips by car were down 35%.
Read more: https://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2025-05-15/us-lost-business-travelers-in-april-as-economic-anxiety-and-border-detentions-cooled-demand
Link to National Travel and Tourism Office RELEASE page - Preliminary Release (Overseas and Mexico Air)