52.4% of international tourists who visited Peru in 2023 came from APEC member economies

Press release from ComexPeru

Lima - In 2023, of the 2.5 million international tourists who entered Peru, 1.3 million were residents of one of the member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC), a figure that represented a 52.4% share of the total, according to Migration data recorded by ComexPerú.

According to the information, foreign tourists residing in an APEC member economy who entered Peru last year represented a growth of 31% compared to the 986,770 tourists who arrived in 2022. In addition, when analyzing the figures for the period 2004-2023, these went from 702,104 to 1.3 million, an average annual growth rate of 3.3%.

“Although the recovery of the total number of international tourists who arrived in the country in 2023 was 57.7%, when comparing the results with 2019, the recovery of inbound tourism considering only the APEC bloc rose to 56.8%,” said ComexPerú, indicating that, with their trade agreements, blocs such as APEC not only favor foreign trade, but “these spaces also represent an opportunity to attract investments and tourism, especially inbound tourism,” which depends on the arrival of international tourists.

Regarding the departure of Peruvian resident tourists to an APEC bloc economy, this amounted to 1.6 million in 2023, 45.8% more than in 2022, and represented a 52.4% share of the total for the year of analysis. Likewise, in the period 2004-2023, Peruvian resident tourists who left the country to one of the Forum's member economies increased from 958,261 to 1.6 million, an average annual increase of 2.6%.

First months of 2024

According to information available from Migrations, as of February 2024, of the 509,128 international tourists who entered the country, 55.8% were residents of one of the APEC economies (284,279 tourists). This figure represented a growth of 71.7% compared to that recorded in the same period in 2023.

Of the 567,731 Peruvian resident tourists who left the country, 50.3% had an APEC economy as their destination (285,461 tourists). The figure recorded represented an 8.8% growth compared to what was recorded in the same period in 2023.

This year, Peru will host the APEC leaders' meeting for the third time, after successfully leading the meetings in 2008 and 2016. The bloc, established in 1989, groups a total of 21 economies in the Pacific Rim, including the world's leading economies. With nearly 60% of global GDP and half of international trade, APEC has become a leading global economic forum, promoting economic growth, fostering technical and economic cooperation, and facilitating trade and investment among its members.

“Hosting APEC implies a great potential to boost the deployment of investments, the improvement of the approach of public policies to promote trade exchange between the economies of the Forum, and to promote the generation of formal employment. In addition, attracting international attention represents an opportunity to boost the recovery of tourism,” noted ComexPerú.

However, he said, it is necessary “for officials linked to the sector to take concrete actions to materialize and increase the benefits.” “For example, granting a concession for the Lima Convention Center would help attract large-scale events, which would add to the development of meeting tourism. In addition, important infrastructure works are just around the corner, such as the start of commercial flights to the Anta airport in Ancash, and the future inauguration of the new Jorge Chávez International Airport,” he said.

This press release was published in English using an automatic translation system.