The bleeding of dollars that has been repeated in recent months due to the tourism deficit added another chapter in October. In red, which amounted to $364.6. This is because the spending of those who visited the country amounted to 232.43 million US dollars, while what Argentines spent abroad amounted to 597.02 million US dollars.
It happens that under the stimulus of the appropriate exchange rate, The number of Argentines who decide to travel abroad for tourism purposes is increasing. While the number of foreigners entering the country for the same purpose decreases.
Thus, as reported by the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses, in its report on International Tourism Statistics (ETI), In October, outbound tourism reached 725,000 Argentine citizens who traveled abroad – a 10.8% increase over the same month last year.; While the number of applicants reached 389,800 (5.9% less than the same period in 2024).
This imbalance, which has become constant throughout this year and most of 2024, is not harmful, because at times when the government needs to accumulate dollars for central bank reserves, Tourism causes the opposite effect; That is, it increases the red color in the sector’s balance.
In this sense we must remember that, Unlike in the case of the exchange of goods, what goes out in dollars for Argentines to spend abroad on tourism is considered an import.What comes as consumption from foreign tourists in Argentina is considered an export.
Economist Lorenzo Sigut Gravina, of the consulting firm Equilibra, estimated this This year, Argentina may end up with a tourism deficit of around US$10 billion. “The trend continues to be an increase in outbound tourism and a decrease in inbound tourism, leading to an increase in the deficit in this area,” the expert commented.
However, Sigut Gravina pointed out that what… What can be considered a positive fact in October is that the decline in domestic tourism and the increase in outbound tourism began to moderate..
This was stated by Marcelo Elizondo, specialist in international business Argentina suffers from a deficit in the balance of services in general, including tourism in particular. “This then impacts the current account. He explained that the country enjoys a good balance in the trade balance of goods, but tourism causes an inappropriate balance in the trade balance of services, which takes a good portion of the trade surplus resulting from the balance of goods.
According to Elizondo, to improve this deficit situation, we do not have to think only about the exchange rate equation. “We must promote reforms that, on the one hand, generate greater international price competitiveness for Argentina in order to increase inbound tourism. There I think it is very important to reduce operating costs for companies that provide services.
In addition, Elizondo proposed improving the infrastructure and service conditions in general, not only from a cost point of view, but from the point of view of quality of services, which allows even better domestic travel. “Argentina has many attractive inland destinations, but they present difficulties in access and accessibility. In conclusion, it is not just about reducing costs, it is about improving benefitsHe pointed out.