PORT LOUIS: Mauritius' tourism revenues plunged by 21 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, the central bank said on Friday, reflecting weak economies in Europe, the source of most of the island's visitors.
A sluggish tourism sector helped boost Mauritius's current account deficit to 6.8 billion rupees ($221.1 million) for the first three months of this year, from 4.2 billion rupees in the same period in 2012.
Revenues from tourism fell by 20.9 percent year-on-year to 8.8 billion rupees in the first quarter, the central bank said, narrowing the services surplus.
"The services surplus witnessed a steep decline of 36.3 percent to 6.1 billion rupees in the first quarter of 2013 from 9.6 billion in the corresponding quarter last year," the Bank of Mauritius said in a statement on Friday.
The merchandise trade deficit narrowed by 11.5 percent to 15.2 billion rupees.
Famed for its white sand beaches and luxury hotels, Mauritius is shifting from an economy traditionally focused on sugar, textiles and tourism towards offshore banking, business outsourcing, luxury real estate and medical tourism.
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