FIJI generated $439.3 million in tourism earnings in the first quarter of this year, registering a slight contraction of 0.3 per cent from the comparable quarter last year.
This, according to the Reserve Bank of Fiji (RBF) that also stated that despite higher average daily spending, a shorter average length of stay had weighed on the outcome.
In its economic review for the August month-end, the central bank said that domestically, while visitor arrivals were marginally lower in the year to July, record high levels of arrivals were recorded for five out of the seven months, including the four consecutive months from April to July.
It said Fiji received 99,311 visitors in July alone, a 1.0 per cent increase when compared to July last year.
“Nonetheless, on a cumulative basis, visitor arrivals totalled 543,073, marking an annual decline of 0.4 per cent, mostly owed to lower arrivals from New Zealand (-5.6 per cent), Australia (-1.2 per cent) and the Asian markets (-9.3 per cent), while visitors from the US (10.3 per cent), Pacific island countries (8.3 per cent), and the UK/European (7.4 per cent) source markets continued to record higher outcomes,” the RBF stated.
Looking ahead, the central bank stated that positive stakeholder sentiments, coupled with the reduced cost of holidaying in Fiji following the value added tax (VAT) reduction, would likely bode well for visitor arrivals in the remaining months of the year.
Meanwhile, the RBF stated that downside risks to its economic outlook persisted mostly through the fragility and uncertainty of global developments, particularly the Trump tariffs and geo-political tensions.
It stated that its impact on Fiji could stem through Fiji’s major trading partners in terms of reduced demand for Fiji’s goods and service exports, visitor arrivals and remittance inflows.
—
Note: This article was first published under the headline: Tourism earns $439m in first quarter in Page13 of the print version of The Fiji Times dated Wednesday, September 3, 2025
