Market commentary by eToro analyst for Romania, Bogdan Maioreanu International tourism is expected to fully recover pre-pandemic levels in 2024, with initial estimates pointing to 2% growth above 2019 levels. But this forecast remains subject to the pace of recovery in Asia and to the evolution of existing economic and geopolitical downside risks according to the Tourism Barometer by United Nations Tourism (UNWTO). While for tourists it might mean higher prices and that they will see crowded airlines and packed popular destinations and beaches, for investors this is excellent news. We created two equal-weight 15-stock BEACH baskets to see how these performed in the past 12 months compared with the global stocks. BEACH is an acronym of Booking sites (like Booking, Expedia, Airbnb), Entertainment (Disney, Live Nation Entertainment, Las Vegas Sands), Airlines (Delta Airlines, Ryanair, American Airlines), Cruise Lines (Carnival Cruises, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line), and Hotels (Marriott, Hilton, Intercontinental) stocks. One basket was for US-focused global players, the ones described above and another for more European focused stocks (from Amadeus IT to Accor). The exact composition is in the graph below. Both have outperformed global equities this year (+25%), the global BEACH basket gaining almost 56% and the European one 50%, even outpacing the high-flying NASDAQ-100 that rose almost 39% in the past 12 months. The success of the BEACH stocks is related to the continuous recovery of tourism following the end of the pandemic. 2023 was a strong recovery year, International tourism receipts reached USD 1.4 trillion according to preliminary estimates, about 93% of the USD 1.5 trillion earned by destinations in 2019. The trend of revenge vacationing after the claustrophobic lockdown marked 2020 and travel restricted 2021 is fading but continues to be active, according to a Deloitte study. In 2021, nearly half of summer travelers said the need for an “escape after lockdowns” motivated them to take trips. But the revenge effect has declined steadily, and by the 2023 holiday season, just 11% said they were making up for missed trips. Most likely this decreasing trend will continue in 2024 but the Tourism professionals forecast a good year according to the latest UNWTO Tourism Confidence Index survey. 67% of tourism professionals indicated better or much better prospects for 2024 compared to 2023 with some 28% expecting similar performance. Europe is expected to drive results again in 2024 with Paris hosting the 2024 Summer Olympics, shows the UNWTO barometer. Romania and Bulgaria joining the Schengen area of free movement with their airports and ports can boost the number of tourists arriving in our country. For Romanian individual investors the good growth prospects of the sector are important as 36% of them declared that they are owning stocks in the Consumer Discretionary where tourism related companies are located, according to the latest eToro Retail Investor Beat survey. Also 5% of the investors are preparing to allocate more money to the sector during this year. *** Bogdan Maioreanu, eToro analyst and markets commentator, has over 20 years of experience in financial services and investments and a strong background in journalism. He held different Corporate Banking management positions in both Raiffeisen Bank and OTP Bank, before moving to business consultancy roles working for IBM Romania among others. Bogdan is an Executive MBA from Asebuss and Washington University. About eToro eToro is a trading and investment platform that empowers people to grow their knowledge and wealth as part of a global community of investors. eToro was founded in 2007 with the vision of opening up the global markets so that everyone can trade and invest in a simple and transparent way. Today, eToro is a global community of more than 35 million registered users who share their investment strategies; and anyone can follow the approaches of those who have been the most successful. Due to the simplicity of the platform users can easily buy, hold and sell assets, monitor their portfolio in real time, and transact whenever they want.
The ECOTECA Association, in partnership with the Ministry of Environment, Waters and Forests, is organizing the conference “Return & Recycle Insights – 2 Years of DRS in Romania”, which will take place on 26 November 2025, between 09:00 – 13:00, at the Bucharest University of Economic Studies (ASE). The event will bring together representatives […]
Nine years after opening its doors, Veranda Mall enters its most exciting chapter yet. What began as a project to breathe new life into the Obor neighborhood has evolved into one of Bucharest’s most beloved destinations for shopping, leisure, and connection. As it marks this anniversary, Veranda unveils a winter events lineup rich in culture, […]
Purcari Wineries (BVB: WINE), CEE’s leading wine producer, announced its financial results for the first nine months of 2025 on Friday, November 14. The company saw a decline of 1.46% in pretax EBITDA earnings from the similar period last year. Specifically, earnings decreased to RON 84.66 million from RON 85.92 million last year. Meanwhile, group […]
With a solid 35-year uninterrupted presence on the Romanian market, Darian—one of the longest-standing consultancy groups with fully Romanian capital—reaffirms its role as a strategic partner for the business environment. Darian marks this anniversary not through grand promises, but by strengthening its core working philosophy: acting as a “co-pilot” for complex decision-making. The company emphasizes […]
The National Bank of Romania (BNR) revised its inflation forecast upward, from 8.8% to 9.6%, for the end of 2025. The institution anticipates that inflation will reach 3.7% at the end of 2026, compared to 3% in the previous forecast, according to data presented on Friday, November 14, by governor Mugur Isărescu. Compared to the […]
The state-owned company Transelectrica (BVB: TEL), the operator of the Romanian national energy system, recorded a net profit of RON 183 million in the first nine months of the year, down 56% compared to the same period last year. Operating revenues fell by 2%, to RON 1.716 billion, mainly due to the decrease in revenues […]
