CEIR: U.S. B2B exhibition industry continues to rebound

U.S., 24th March: The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) has released its latest index tracking the U.S. B2B exhibition industry in the fourth quarter of 2024, showing the industry continue to rebound with a strong improvement in the quarter.

The CEIR Total Index combines to track four metrics: net square feet (NSF) sold, number of exhibitors, number of attendees, and real revenues. The Q4 CEIR Total Index dropped 4.4% in the quarter, compared to the same period in 2019. Among the four metrics, number of exhibitors has recovered the most, with 0.1% below the Q4 2019 figure, followed by real revenues at 1.1% behind Q4 2019. NSF was 3.0% below Q4 2019, and number of attendees was the slowest to recover, with 12.9% behind.

Adam Sacks, President of Tourism Economics, commented, “Recent results confirm the continued recovery in trade show activity through the end of last year. This year our baseline outlook remains positive, though we expect economic and policy uncertainty and weaker sentiment among international participants will weigh on business decisions and the ongoing recovery in trade show activity.”