Jack Ferguson, president and CEO of the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau met with travel industry leaders from across the nation at the White House on April 29 to discuss the affect of international trade policies on various business sectors, including travel, with senior Obama administration officials.
A number of key trade measures are being considered by Congress—chief among them the Trade Promotion Authority, which would expedite the president’s negotiation of critical agreements with international trading partners.
According to Roger Dow, president and CEO, U.S. Travel Association, trade agreements have successfully benefited the national economy, helping generate $222 billion in travel exports in 2014 alone. Travel accounts for 10 percent of all U.S. exports—and in 2014 accounted for one out of every nine new U.S. export dollars. Without travel, the overall U.S. trade deficit would have been 15 percent greater.
Philadelphia international travel increased 13 percent from 2012.
