Business travel grinds to a halt

INTERNATIONAL business travel has now almost completely come to a halt, said the GBTA at the end of March, with 96% of member companies having now cancelled or suspended all or most international travel regardless of location.

A poll of members drew more than 1,100 responses and revealed that 84% of its Us-based members and 81% of European members have also called time on domestic business trips. Four in ten respondents say their company has implemented blanket bans on business travel, while 53% say they have cancelled all but essential trips.

Forty percent of respondents said they thought business travel will resume within three months and 17% said it would commence again within six months, but another 40% were unsure when movement will resume.