Global travel and tourism deal activity has declined by 11% year-on-year during the first three quarters of 2024, with only 519 deals announced compared to 583 in the same period of 2023, according to GlobalData.
These deals include mergers and acquisitions (M&A), private equity, and venture financing activities, and the drop highlights challenges within the sector, as various regions experience shifts in deal-making momentum.
An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database shows that the volume of M&A deals in the travel and tourism industry fell by 6.8% year-on-year during Q1-Q3 2024. Venture financing deals saw a more significant drop of 25.2%, while private equity deal activity remained flat during the same period.
Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, said, “The decline in global travel and tourism deal activity was mostly driven by a significant fall in deals volume in some regions and countries, while deal activity remained relatively better for some other regions and countries. In fact, some regions and countries even showcased double-digit growth in deal volume, which seems to be an indication of improving deal-making sentiments.”
At the country level, the landscape remains mixed. The United States, China, and France experienced significant decreases in deal volume, with drops of 36.3%, 38.5%, and 42.9%, respectively.
Conversely, India and Japan bucked the trend, reporting deal volume growth of 24.3% and 38.1%, respectively, during the same period.
Deal volumes for countries such as the United Kingdom, South Korea, and Australia remained steady, showing no significant changes from last year.
North America, Asia-Pacific, and South and Central American regions experienced decline in deal volume by 36%, 7.7%, and 20% during Q1-Q3 2024 compared to Q1-Q3 2023.
In contrast, Europe registered 10.3% YoY improvement in deal activity. Meanwhile, deal volume for the Middle East and African region mostly remained at the same level.
