2024-07-30 15:37:45
A sharp decline in the number of visitors to Parisian shops, cafes and restaurants due to the outflow of residents from the capital and a smaller than usual flow of foreign tourists in the run-up to the 2024 Olympics (August 26-11) casts doubt on the hopes of its organizers for immediate economic dividends from the Games.
As reported by Day.Az with reference to TASS, representatives of the business community informed the Financial Times newspaper about this.
According to Bernard Cohen-Hadad, head of the Confederation of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises of the Paris Region, some restaurant owners have seen sales fall by 50% in July, creating problems with paying rent and salaries. “We expected there to be difficulties <...>but we did not expect such a sharp decline in the number of French and foreign tourists,” Cohen-Hadad noted.
“The economic situation was already difficult for many due to inflation and high energy prices,” said Francis Palombi, head of the federation of commercial companies. Now, many Parisians, mindful of the alarming events related to the COVID-19 lockdown, have decided to leave the city in a hurry, he said.
As reported earlier, the Paris Tourism Office and the business community expect the situation to change during the Olympic Games. Tourists from the Middle East are expected to return to Paris, and the number of American tourists is expected to increase by 15%. The number of travelers from Europe fell by 18% in June, but during the Games, it is expected to increase by 24%. Some businesses also expect more tourists after the end of the sporting events, especially if the 2024 Olympics are successful.
On this basis, France’s National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies forecasts GDP growth of 0.3 percentage points in the third quarter. This is roughly in line with estimates by German insurance company Allianz, which predict a total GDP increase of €10 billion, driven by tourist spending and public investment in infrastructure.
The Olympic Games in Paris will be held from July 26 to August 11. The opening ceremony is scheduled to take place on the Seine. Due to the high risk of potential threats at the opening ceremony, which will take place along the Seine embankment and at the Place du Trocadero, the number of spectators was decided to be reduced from 600,000 to 326,000, and special QR codes will be introduced before the start of the Games for movement around the Olympic venues and near the Paris embankments.
Subscribe to our WhatsApp channel and stay up to date with the latest news!