PREVIEW! 2008 Industry Forecast Another demanding year for business travel BCD Travel In Motion, September 2007 (excerpted) The BCD Travel 2008 Industry Forecast, powered by Advito, will be released later this month (and will be available on www.bcdtravel.com). The Industry Forecast provides a full corporate travel industry overview as well as recommendations for managing costs and travel in the upcoming year. In this edition of In Motion, we'll give you a sneak peek at some of the Forecast's conclusions. With an expanding global economy leading to a predicted increase of international travel by over five percent annually, capacity in all industry sectors is going to be a major challenge for corporations struggling to keep a lid on costs in 2008. 2008 Hotel Forecast The Context Hotel demand around the world continues a three-year trend to outpace supply. Investment plans by all major chains will add significantly more hotel rooms over the next two to five years but relief is not expected until well into 2008. The Predictions Advito expects the 2008 average daily room rate to increase by 4.5 percent on average. Markets will split between increases and decreases, with the majority of increases driven by high-growth, limited supply markets. Many major markets, including Amsterdam, Paris and London, are selling out mid-week. What It Means for Corporate Travel Buyers Jerry Murck, senior vice president of BCD Travel's Global Hotel Program, says that companies will need to think about new strategies when it comes to procuring hotel rates, including adopting demand-based pricing or employing bulk-purchase room allocations. They can also forge ahead with traditional ways of reducing costs and/or demand: booking ahead (more crucial than ever with skyrocketing occupancy rates); enforcing the BCD Travel booking channel for better compliance; shifting traveler stay patterns; and encouraging corporate meetings in non-prime destinations. 2008 Airfare Forecast The Context Rising fuel costs, higher passenger loads and controlled capacity will produce rising airfares. As the historic EU-U.S. Open Skies agreement goes into effect in March 2008, some major air carriers are already preparing to take advantage of the new markets that will be accessible to them in 2008, and corporate travel buyers are hoping for greater choice and lower fares on transatlantic flights. The Predictions In 2008, average published airfares are expected to rise 6 percent to 10 percent from 2007 levels, according to Bob Brindley, vice president for the Americas, Advito. Because of an increase in corporate air discounts, 2008 corporate fare hikes will be closer to 5 percent to 7 percent.  Rose Stratford, senior vice president of industry relations for BCD Travel in the Americas, believes the introduction of more competition will, generally speaking, be good news for business travelers. Business class fares on those routes are likely to fall once Open Skies takes effect. What It Means for Corporate Travel Buyers They'll be looking harder for savings opportunities – but they can still find them. Companies will need to control compliance in order to shift share to preferred carriers to capitalize on negotiated discounts, so they will need the kind of robust information BCD Travel provides through TripSourceTM: Fulfillment and DecisionSourceTM: Data Manager. Client may also wish to explore routing and carrier options presented by non-hub airports, all-business-class carriers and low-cost carriers.         Home | Business Travel | Demo Room | Reservations | Contact Us Travel Management Program | Groups & Meetings | Club Getaway ©1997-2007 Atlas Travel International. All rights reserved.