Sales growth of 20% and 17% is expected for 2023 and 2024 compared to the previous year. This is according to the latest edition of the Global Exhibition Barometer, which was published by the International Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI) at the beginning of August. The latest survey confirms the industry's turnover forecasts from the January edition and confirms an increase in jobs and investment activity.
Against a complex global backdrop, the global trade fair industry is optimistic about its short and medium-term prospects. For example, 48% of companies plan to increase their workforce in the next six months, while a further 48% plan to keep their current headcount stable. The highest proportion of companies planning to increase their workforce is to be found in Malaysia (91%), Brazil (75%) and the United Arab Emirates (73%).
Globally, business activity increased for half of companies in the first half of 2024 (4 in 10 in Asia Pacific, Central and South America and the Middle East and Africa; and 6 in 10 in Europe and North America), while it was categorised as 'normal' by one in three companies. This trend will continue in the coming year, with the average percentage of companies reporting increased activity ranging from 59% in North America to 50% in Asia Pacific, 49% in the Middle East and Africa, and 48% in Central and South America and Europe.
Topic number 1: Economic situation
Sales in 2023 compared to 2022 vary from 143% in Malaysia, 139% in Thailand, 132% in Argentina and the USA to 105% in Spain, 103% in Brazil and 101% in Australia. Sales in 2024 compared to 2023 vary from 148% in Colombia, 138% in Brazil, 123% in the UAE, to 106% in Germany, 105% in China and 98% in France.
In terms of operating profits for 2023, 61% of companies expect an annual increase of more than 10% and 27% expect a stable increase. For 2024, 47% expect an increase of more than 10% and 39% anticipate a stable development. The highest proportion of companies expecting an annual profit increase of more than 10% for 2023 are in Malaysia (100%), Spain (83%) and Thailand (75%), as well as in Brazil (82%), the UK (69%) and Malaysia (58%) for 2024.
When asked about the most pressing challenges, the economic situation in the domestic market is the most pressing issue (22%), followed by global economic development (15%). This is followed by internal management challenges (11%), sustainability/climate (9%) and the impact of digitalisation (6%).
Current strategic priorities
In all regions, a large majority of companies intend to develop new activities, either in the traditional area of the exhibition industry, outside the current product portfolio or in both areas. As far as geographical expansion is concerned, 43% of companies state that they intend to operate in new countries and regions.
There is a general consensus that AI will influence the industry. 90% of companies state this, and a growing proportion of companies report that they are actively utilising this new technology. The areas that will be most affected by AI developments are the same across all regions: sales, marketing and customer relations (83% globally), research and development (82%) and event production (69%). These are precisely the areas in which generative AI applications are already being used most frequently in all regions (39%, 38% and 28% worldwide respectively).
The study also includes forecasts and analyses for 19 focus countries and regions - Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the USA - as well as for five additional aggregated regional zones.
The current edition of the biannual UFI industry report was completed in July 2024 and includes data from 453 companies from 68 countries and regions. The next UFI Global Exhibition Barometer survey will be conducted in December 2024. / kn
The UFI Global Exhibition Barometer is available for download here.
