EU remains world’s top destination for tourists but external travel balance shows a deficit of ECU -1.3bn in 1998

The European Union as a whole maintained in 1998 its leading position in world tourism as a main source and a main destination of international tourist flows. Spain, France and Italy were the most attractive destinations for one out of four tourists in the world. However, a significant slowdown of the extra-EU receipts produced for the first time an EU external travel balance deficit of ECU -1.3bn. The USA remained the EU's first foreign partner.