British execs still fly to US despite Trump turmoil, data suggests
Business travel across the pond has increased this year despite concern over policy developments under President Trump, data suggests.
Data from the travel tech firm Navan, shared with CityAM, shows year-to-date bookings for UK-US corporate trips have risen by nearly a quarter year-on-year.
There were 8,000 corporate trips from the UK to the US made on the online travel management group’s platform, up from 6,000 the year prior. Europe-US trips also showed resilience over the period, rising from 15,000 to 20,000.
Overall travel from Europe to the US has fallen dramatically since Trump’s election as political and economic tension, coupled with a more hostile US border, pile pressure on some of the most popular air routes.
Navan’s data suggests corporate travel may be less impacted by Trump’s erratic policy changes than first thought. But it should be caveated that a later Easter this year may have skewed figures slightly.
“Transatlantic business travel is proving remarkably resilient,” Michael Riegel, chief executive of Navan’s EMEA segment, told CityAM.
“I think this shows that in a post-pandemic world businesses have realised that for all the many benefits of technology, face-to-face interaction really is irreplaceable if you want to build relationships and do deals.”
New York’s JFK Airport a top destination
Top US destinations for European business travellers were New York, San Francisco and Boston, with Las Vegas, Chicago and Austin also ranking highly.
Riegel’s comments echo recent reports from British Airways owner IAG and Heathrow, the UK’s busiest airport.
IAG, the airline conglomerate which also owns Aer Lingus, said last Friday it some “softness” in US economy bookings had been offset by its premium cabins.
Heathrow reported a 5.5 per cent increase in transatlantic travel in April. It also said year-to-date traffic to and from New York’s JFK Airport had reached 1m by early May – the fastest time the airport has reached that total.