Members of the UK Guild of Travel Management Companies (GTMC) are on course for a successful year after a "summer of success."
According to latest figures, its members made 1.48m airline bookings in the three months to September 30 and 700,000 hotel reservations, a respective rise of 5% and 12% on figures for the same period in 2005.
Rail bookings during the three months rose by 7% to 497,387 while car rental booking increased by 3% to 78,240.
GTMC members completed 2.85m booking in the three months, a 7% rise on 2005.
Philip Carlisle, GTMC's ceo, said: "The third quarter, spanning the main summer holiday season, is generally one of the quieter periods, but this is a very strong performance indeed.
"Barring unforeseeable incidents, and providing interest rates are kept under careful control, I can see no reason why these business activity increases should not continue well into 2007."
…And the NBTA predicts one
A survey of travel managers by the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) predicts that business travel will go on growing in 2007.
Most respondent (67.7%) said they expected their travellers to make more trips next year with their companies' spend on air and hotels increasing.
A large majority in each case put the rise down to expected increases in fares and room rates.
But a substantial number also thought that their company would have more trips and more travellers.
The questionnaire paints a more optimistic outlook than the similar one carried out in 2005. The 2006 survey has greater numbers predicting increased air and hotel spend.
NBTA's travel manager members also said they were making far greater use of alternatives to commercial airlines, like private jets, charter jets and fractional jet ownership.
While 33% said they used them in 2004, the figure for 2006 has risen to 56.1%.
On cost cutting initiatives, the travel managers earmarked three areas: TMC contracts (38.5%), pushing policy mandates (74.9%) and consolidating suppliers: airlines (20.7%), hotels (28.5%) and car rentals (20.5%).
* see BTE's recruitment site www.businesstraveljobs.com