Earlier this week the Australian Bureau of Statistics released its latest tourism figures which revealed that Australia's tourism boom continues unabated.
According to the data, short-term arrivals increased to 756,000 in August, up 0.8% on July's figures and 7.9% year-on-year.
The key driver of this strong growth has been arrivals from the China mainland. China provided 125,600 arrivals in August, up a massive 22.8% on August 2016's arrivals.
I expect the trend will continue for some time to come, which could make it worth considering shares with exposure to the tourism industry.
Here are three to consider:
Event Hospitality and Entertainment Ltd (ASX: EVT)
As well as its eponymous cinema chain, Event is also the company behind accommodation brands such as Rydges, QT, and Thredbo Alpine Village. I believe that the influx of short-term visitors will cause demand for its rooms to increase strongly. This could lead to higher occupancy levels and room rates, ultimately putting it in a position to grow its earnings and dividend at a solid rate for the foreseeable future.
Qantas Airways Limited (ASX: QAN)
Thanks to new routes into China, low oil prices, exceptional capacity management, and its cost savings program, I feel Qantas could be a big winner from the Australian tourism boom. The last two years have been records for the airline and I expect FY 2018 could be yet another record breaker.
Sydney Airport Holdings Pty Ltd (ASX: SYD)
As the main gateway into Australia I believe Sydney Airport is in a great position to benefit from the tourism boom. This morning the airport operator reported its traffic performance for the month of September. A total of 3,587,000 passengers passed through its gates in September, up 2% from a year earlier. International passengers were the main driver of this growth. They increased 7.1% year-on-year.
