As the Golden Week Chinese holiday begins, UKinbound has released its latest Business Barometer, which reveals a surge in growth from the market in July and August this year.
Conducted in conjunction with Qa Research, the results also highlighted the positive effect the hot summer had on the tourism industry with business revenues and confidence up.
A record 30 per cent of members stated that China was now their main growth market, while the USA ranked second, with 11 per cent of members stating it was their largest growth market.
China and America have continually ranked first or second as the leading growth markets for UKinbound members since July 2015, but this is the first time that over 30 per cent of members have experienced growth from just one of these markets.
Some 71 per cent of members stated that bookings/visitor numbers/customer orders in July and August were the same or higher than 2017 figures, with 78 per cent stating that revenue had increased or stayed the same, compared to last year.
Additionally, the survey revealed that 56 per cent of members are feeling confident about business conditions in the upcoming 12 months – the highest figure recorded this year.
UKinbound chairman Mark McVay commented: “Although not a surprise, we are very pleased to see that the warm British summer produced positive business results for many of our members.
“It’s also very encouraging to hear that the Chinese visitor market is going from strength to strength.
“In 2017 visitation from China grew by 29 per cent, while spend increased by 35 per cent, compared to 2016, and it looks like this upwards trend is set to continue for our members.”