Q2 2021 turnover statistics show return to activity but no definitive recovery for hospitality sector

Indexed turnover and growth rates for the hospitality sector in Q2 2021 by Eurostat leave room for cautious optimism but also show that the sector remains far from achieving full recovery to pre-Covid levels.

For the first time in over one year and a half, sectoral quarterly growth rates are positive across all European markets for which data is available. In the EU27, a growth rate of 67,9% shows that the sector is regaining its form after five successive quarters in double-digit negatives. Growth rates on national markets span from over 200% in Spain to only 8,8% in Germany, as national markets experience significantly different roads back to business-as-usual.

Indexed turnover figures increased in Q2 2021 in the EU27 and in all markets (for which data is available) compared to the previous quarter (Q1 2021) or the same quarter the previous year (Q2 2020), when the hospitality sector felt the full impact of Covid-19 related measures. However, turnover figures remain well below sectoral turnover levels recorded in Q2 before the Covid-19 pandemic – with 2021 turnover levels only 55% of levels recorded in 2019. From 2015 to 2019, Q2 hospitality sector turnover figures consistently increased year on year before shrinking almost threefold in 2020.