Visits to UK rise amid fall in pound

The number of visitors to the UK rose to 3.5 million in June, up 7 per cent from the same month last year, official figures released on Friday showed.

The number of visitors from North America shot up by 34 per cent, the figures by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed.

The best month so far this year was April, with 3.7 million visitors coming to the UK -- up 19 per cent from a year earlier -- as the fall in the value of the pound made the UK a more attractive destination, the BBC quoted the ONS as saying.

Over the April-to-June quarter, the number of visitors from overseas rose to 10.75 million, up 8 per cent from the same period a year earlier.

While in the UK, the visitors spent 2.2 billion pounds, a rise of 2 per cent.

Meanwhile, UK residents took a record 7.2 million trips abroad, up 4 per cent.

VisitBritain Director Patricia Yates said: "Tourism is one of Britain's most valuable export industries and this continued growth demonstrates the industry's increasing importance as a key driver of economic growth across our nations and regions."

--IANS

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