Spanish tourism companies lost €18 billion in turnover during the Easter holidays due to government restrictions to prevent the spread of the new Coronavirus pandemic, according to the Business Federation of Territorial Associations of Spanish Travel Agencies (Fetave).
“The data reveal a terrifying balance sheet,” the Federation says, noting that about 2.5 million workers and 400,000 Spanish tourism companies are affected by the Coronavirus crisis.
The Federation points out that more than 70,000 flights have been canceled, representing a loss of 10 million plane tickets, more than 95% of the forecasts made for the Easter period, noting that more than 15 million overnight stays have been canceled during this period.
Furthermore, the Federation describes as “positive” the adoption the day before by the government of a second line of state-guaranteed loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and self-employed workers, amounting to 20 billion euros, to help them cope with the economic consequences of the pandemic.
However, the trade organization warned that the “catastrophic” losses caused by the cancellation of trips and stays during this Easter period could lead to a lack of funds or even the bankruptcy of tens of thousands of tourist businesses, if the line from the Official Credit Institute (ICO) is not activated quickly.
“This does not seem possible if the government does not undertake an in-depth reform of the conditions of access to ICO credits,” the Federation believes.
According to the latest assessment given on Saturday by the Ministry of Health, the number of cases of Coronavirus contamination has reached 161,852 in Spain, an increase of 4,830 in 24 hours, while the number of deaths has risen from 15,843 to 16,353.
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