China continued to lead international outbound tourism with a 12% increase in spending in 2016, followed by the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and France as top five spenders according to UNWTO.
Spending on travel abroad saw 4% growth in 2016 to 1.2 billion international tourist arrivals.
International tourism expenditure from China grew by US$11 billion to US$261 billion, an increase of 12%. The number of China outbound travelers rose 6% to 135 million in 2016.
Three other Asian outbound markets among the first ten showed very positive results: South Korea (US$27 bn), Australia (US$27 bn), and Hong Kong (China; US$24 bn).
Continue to read: China travel market overview 2016