The worldwide direct spend of the meeting and event industry and the power of face-to-face meetings surpassed more than US$1.03 trillion in 2017, according to a preliminary report released Wednesday at IMEX America, the biggest meeting and event industry trade show in the United States.
The Global Economic Significance of Business Events, conducted by Oxford Economics, is the first-ever comprehensive study of the impact of business events.
“The Global Economic Significance of Business Events offers a compelling snapshot of the broad reach, scope and strength of our industry,” said Karen Kotowski, CMP, CAE, CEO of the Events Industry Council (EIC). “The findings will help us tell a more complete story of how and why business events serve as a major economic generator.
The full research report will be released on Nov. 9, and will include the total economic impact of business events, including jobs and GDP, as well as a ranking of the top 50 countries.
The study shows that in 2017, more than 1.4 billion participants from more than 180 countries attended meetings and events, generating more than $1.03 trillion in direct spending. The average amount spent per business event participant was $711, according to the report.
Aran Ryan, director of Oxford Economics, said the research was the first global analysis of the industry and tapped into various country-level studies to draw data. The study examined meetings that included 10 or more people who spent a minimum of four hours in a contracted venue.
“This helps put the size of the industry into context,” he said. “It gave us a sense of the robust spending.”
The $1.03 trillion reflects the direct spending from planning, producing, attending and/or hosting business events that include meetings, conferences, conventions, exhibitions and incentive travel. As a commercial engine, the $1.04 trillion would rank the business events sector “far larger” than what is spent for consumer electronics in terms of size and scope, Ryan said.
North America had the highest spend at $381 billion in 2017, representing 37 percent of global business events direct spending, followed by:
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Asia: $290.9 billion
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Western Europe: $266 billion
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Latin America/Caribbean: $33 billion
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Africa: $23.4 billion
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Central and Eastern Europe: $23.2 billion
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Middle East: $1.8 billion
When measured in terms of the number of business event participants, Asia is the largest market with 453.4 million, or 31.3 percent, in 2017, according to the report, followed by Western Europe (406 million) and North America (329.7 million).
The share of business events activity accounted for by the top 50 countries (96 percent of the global total) is similar to the 93 percent of global GDP accounted for by those same countries.
While the average spend was $742, the average in the U.S. was $1,156, according to the study, followed by Western Europe ($655) and Asia ($642).
Future aspects of the report will examine jobs in the meetings sector, Ryan said.
“IMEX America, which brings together more than 13,000 of the industry’s leading decision-makers and influencers, is the ideal place to share the powerful effect business events have--economically, socially and culturally,” said Tina Wehmeir, CMP, CAE, chair of the EIC. “This research will be a critical tool in demonstrating why business events are key to growth and development in every corner of the world.”
The research was the result of an industry collaboration with the EIC in partnership with IMEX, Hilton, the PCMA Education Foundation and the MPI Foundation, which was the leading sponsor of the study.
To access the summary report, click here.
