Study says business travel has high returns

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WASHINGTON, May 7 (UPI) -- A study sponsored by the U.S. Travel Association said that every dollar invested in business travel was returned almost 10 times over in business revenue.

The study conducted by Oxford Economics found a return of $9.50 in revenue and $2.90 in profit for each dollar spent on business travel, USA Today reported Tuesday.

The study was based on data covering an 18-year span in 14 separate industries, the newspaper said.

In a separate but complimentary study, Oxford Economics surveyed 298 business travelers in November. Fifty-seven percent of those asked indicated they believed cutting back on business travel during the recession and early recovery harmed their company.

In comparison, 4 percent indicated cutting back on travel during the downturn helped their firms.

"When we analyzed data from the Great Recession and recovery, we learned that companies that invested the most in business travel tended to grow the fastest," said Adam Sacks, managing director of Oxford Economics.

Business travel is also a catalyst for spending that supports many business segments from airlines, car rentals and hotels to restaurants and golf courses.

Marriott International, for example, reported earnings increased 31 percent in the first quarter much of that attributed to increased business travel.

"Demand from business travelers is up quite strongly. It's really the strongest demand component of hotels right now," said C. Patrick Scholes, managing director of gaming and lodging equity research at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.