UK-based business travellers made 5.1 per cent fewer trips overseas during the first four months of 2012 compared to the same period last year.
But the number of overseas residents making business trips to the UK rose by 7.2 per cent over the same four-month period, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS)
Overseas business trips by UK residents fell to 2.13 million between January and April – which was down from 2.25 million during 2012. Over the last 12 months, the number of business trips abroad was only down by 1 per cent to 6.84 million year-on-year.
Business trips by overseas residents to the UK grew to 2.5 million for the first four months of 2013, an increase from 2.33 million last year. The number of visits over the last 12 months also rose by 4 per cent to 7.59 million.
The figures are compiled by the ONS from the International Passenger Survey which conducts face-to-face interviews with passengers passing through ports and on routes into and out of the UK.