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4 The Winnipeg Barometer Report | Volume 9, 2018 Turning to the United States, aided by a strong economy and high consumer confidence, overnight visits from the U.S. in 2018 are projected to grow 3.4 per cent over 2017 actual visits. Among the various modes of transportation used by Americans, auto traffic will be most affected by the recent rise of gas prices. Despite strong growth projected for air travel, the sensitivity of car travellers to gas prices will limit U.S. leisure travel growth to 3.5 per cent. The strong U.S. economy will help contribute to strong business travel growth of 3.9 per cent from the U.S. In part, this will be due to business travellers attending conventions, trade shows and other business events across Canada. Overnight visitation to Canada from overseas countries during 2018 is forecasted to achieve strong growth of 6.7 per cent over 2017 visits. The overseas leisure travel market is forecasted to grow 9.6 per cent this year and overseas business travel is projected to improve 5.1 per cent. Growth of overseas travel to Canada is being attributed to good economic growth and consumer confidence abroad, a favourable exchange rate and gains in direct air travel to Canada. It should also be noted, 2018 has been named the Canada-China Year of Tourism; an initiative to create closer ties between Chinese and Canadian citizens. Aside from additional promotional activities, there will be seven more visa processing centres in China for visitors. Canada's direct air capacity for domestic and international markets continues to grow in 2018. By the end of the 3rd quarter of 2018, domestic non-stop seat capacity is forecasted to grow 6.9 per cent and international capacity up 5.6 per cent. The ability to get to a destination is an integral part of planning and taking a trip. Air access is an important measurement of the potential growth of Canada's tourism markets, because travel growth is linked to improved air access. Visitor spending in Canada during 2018 is expected to grow 6.6 per cent over 2017 expenditures. This is due primarily to the international travel market and expected travel prices. Beyond 2018, the dollar value of visitor spending is estimated to grow between 5.0 to 6.0 per cent from 2019 to 2021. Canada Overnight Travel Outlook (percentage growth over previous year in italics) 2017 2018 2019 Total Overnight Person-Visits (000's) 145,265 +3.1 149,056 +2.6 152,520 +2.3 Domestic 121,099 +2.9 123,777 +2.2 126,226 +2.0 United States 15,616 +3.1 16,154 +3.4 16,625 +2.9 Overseas 8,551 +7.2 9,125 +6.7 9,670 +6.0 Total Overnight Expenditures (C$ millions) $56,553 +7.7 $60,313 +6.6 $63,620 +5.5 Travel Price Index 4.61 3.45 2.40 Sources: Conference Board of Canada; Statistics Canada