The well-known Chinese financial news media group Caixin recently reported that Chinese international travelers have been labeled as major spenders. The United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) 2016 numbers showed that Chinese consumer’s international spending reached US$261 billion, which was more than twice the U.S. total (the U.S. spending was ranked number two). However, international consulting company Oliver Wyman just released a study showing some significant changes in the pattern of Chinese’ international spending habits. The report showed that, starting in 2016, Chinese international tourists spent only 33 percent in their total overseas expenditures on buying physical products. The same number was 41 percent in 2015. The statistics also showed that those who are still interested in buying physical products are among the lower income population. The spending trend is shifting to the categories of “Sightseeing” (ranked number one) and “Entertainment” (ranked number two). The research also showed that Chinese travelers depend heavily on Chinese language website reviews and on security incident news about the destination countries.
Source: Caixin, July 12, 2017
http://international.caixin.com/2017-07-12/101114417.html