ARC said the total consolidated dollar value of airline
tickets sold by U.S.-based travel agencies in the first half of 2019 rose 3.4% year
over year, totaling $52.4 billion.
For the month of June, the total dollar value of airline
tickets reached $7.9 billion, a 0.4% increase. The average price of a roundtrip
ticket was $512.
Passenger trips settled by ARC for U.S. travel agencies in
the first half of the year increased 2.4% to 162 million. For June, passenger
trips rose 1.2% to 24 million. U.S. domestic trips rose 1.4% to 15 million,
while international passenger trips rose 0.9% to 8.9 million. The trips handled
by agencies that self-report as handling at least 70% corporate/government
business rose 1%.
In the first half of 2019, electronic miscellaneous document
sales, which cover ancillary services like seat upgrades, rose 2% to $44
million, and EMD transactions fell 2.6% to 669,259. For June, EMD sales reached
$6.8 million, up 13.3%, while EMD transactions rose 14.9% to 113,897.
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Source: Business Travel News