FOREIGN tourist spending declined last year, dragging the tourism sector’s contribution to the economy, data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed.
Tourism Direct Gross Value Added (TDGVA) — a measure of the value generated by industries directly serving tourists — slipped by 1.4 percent to P2.27 trillion in 2025 from P2.30 trillion a year earlier.
As a result, tourism’s share of gross domestic product fell to 8.1 percent, down from 2024’s 8.7 percent.
Inbound tourism expenditures, or spending by foreign visitors in the Philippines, dropped by 6.4 percent to P698.46 billion from P745.99 billion.
Weaker inbound tourism spending offset gains in other expenditure categories, particularly domestic tourism expenditures that rose 3 percent to P3.26 trillion from P3.16 trillion.
Outbound tourism expenditure, or spending by Filipinos traveling abroad, posted the fastest growth of 3.5 percent, reaching P357.93 billion in 2025.
Internal tourism expenditure — which combines domestic and inbound tourism spending — grew 1.2 percent to P3.96 trillion from P3.91 trillion.
The Tourism Satellite Account tracks expenditures associated with accommodation services, food and beverage serving activities, transport services, travel agencies and reservation services, entertainment and recreation activities, shopping and other tourism-related services.
The PSA estimated employment in tourism industries at 7.70 million in 2025, up by 2.5 percent from 7.51 million workers in 2024.
Tourism employment accounted for 15.7 percent of total employment in the country last year, higher than the revised 15.4 percent posted a year earlier.
The PSA noted that historical data series for TDGVA, gross value added of tourism industries and tourism employment from 2000 to 2024 were revised following Philippine Tourism Statistical Classification System updates approved in 2025.
The Philippine Tourism Satellite Account is compiled annually by the PSA to measure the contribution of tourism industries to the Philippine economy.
NIÑA MYKA PAULINE ARCEO
