Original scientific paper
The hotel industry’s import-dependence: The case of Croatia
Neven Ivandić
; Institute for tourism, Zagreb, Croatia
Zrinka Marušić
; Institute for tourism, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Tourism contributes significantly to the Croatian economy. But, given Croatia’s high import dependence, one of the questions that arises is how much the tourism industry contributes to the total imports of Croatia.
The aim of the research was to estimate the size of the direct import component in products used in the hotel and restaurant sector in 2004. Furthermore, the research aimed at detecting products that are the most important in total imports to the sector, as well as to analyze the major reasons for imports. The official data available from the National Tourism Administration and Croatian Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Croatia, including an existing input-output table, did not provide an adequate basis for the analysis due to both the level of aggregation and the unavailability of data.
Therefore, three surveys have been conducted: (1) survey of hotels; (2) survey of bars and restaurants; and (3) survey of households engaged in private accommodation services. The surveys were based on the representative samples of 35, 186 and 109 firms/households respectively. Each survey collected data on monetary value for more than one hundred products used within the entity and the value of imports for each product and/or product group.
The research revealed that the import dependence of the hotel industry, in regard to specific products and product groups, is lower than average and the major reason for the import is the unavailability of specific products produced domestically. The structure of imports by product has shown open market niches for domestic producers but also certain obstacles to such production and commercial orientation.
Keywords
import dependence; hotel industry; tourism; survey; Croatia
Hrčak ID:
24649
URI
Publication date:
5.10.2007.
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