Airbnb’s first quarter earnings call revealed that international travelers are skipping visits to the US, indicating President Trump’s trade war may be impacting consumer preferences. The company’s CFO, Ellie Mertz, noted a decline in popularity of foreign travelers coming to the US compared to last year and this time last year.
The trend has had little impact on Airbnb’s quarterly results since foreign visitors account for only 2-3% of its business. However, similar trends have been observed by other players in the travel industry, including JetBlue, which canceled a planned route between Halifax, Canada, and Boston due to low demand.
Airline CEO Marty St. George stated that the decline in US-Canada demand was not enough to make the daily route profitable. The cancelation is seen as a precautionary measure.
In other industries, companies have noted an increase in anti-American sentiment. McDonald’s CEO Christopher Kempczinski reported a rise in consumers expressing intentions to cut back on purchases of American brands. However, this has had no impact on McDonald’s business, with consumer sentiment remaining strong.
The implications of these trends are being closely watched by economists, who estimate that foreign boycotts could shave 0.1-0.3% off domestic GDP in 2025, resulting in a hit of up to $80 billion.
Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/airbnb-cfo-absolutely-have-seen-a-decline-in-popularity-of-foreign-travelers-coming-to-the-us-182242698.html