We recently compiled a list of the . In this article, we are going to take a look at where Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE:RCL) stands against the other travel and leisure stocks.
Prior to COVID-19 pandemic, travel and tourism sector was one of the most important sectors in the world economy. The sector made up ~10% of global GDP and was responsible for 320 million jobs worldwide, as reported by the IMF. After first case was identified in Wuhan, China, COVID-19 was declared a pandemic outbreak.
Due to lockdowns and ban on international travel, global hospitality and tourism sector saw significant losses. As per first UNWTO World Tourism Barometer of the year, international tourism closed 2023 at ~88% of pre-pandemic levels, with estimated ~1.3 billion international arrivals.
UNWTO World Tourism Barometer gives a brief overview of the sector's performance in 2023, assessing recovery by global region, sub-region and destination. The Middle East led this recovery in relative terms. It was the only region to overcome pre-pandemic levels as the region saw arrivals 22% above 2019.
Europe touched 94% of 2019 levels, aided by intra-regional demand along with travel from the US. Experts believe that stage is all set for resilience and rapid recovery of travel and tourism sector, with pre-pandemic numbers anticipated by 2024 end. Rebound is having a solid impact on several economies, jobs, growth and opportunities for communities.
Despite a range of economic uncertainties and geopol.