The dramatic decrease of the British pound’s value after the Brexit announcement will translate, in the short term at least, to more expensive holidays for Brits travelling abroad, a fact that will affect tourism numbers for Greece.
According to Harris Economopoulos, Greek President of the British Hellenic Chamber of Commerce in addition to tourism, Greek exports such as food products and raw materials will become more expensive for British customers. He also predicted that fewer British tourists would travel to Greece, especially next year, since many may have already prepaid their current vacation.
On the contrary, he noted that imports from the UK – such as clothing, vehicles and many other industrial products – may become more attractive to the Greek market. However, he stressed that trade relations between Greece and the UK have suffered in the past four years due to the financial crisis in Greece and the “stiff” relations between the two governments.
Nevertheless, Mr. Economopoulos was optimistic and argued that the UK has always been a major supporter of a united Europe. The British referendum result, he elaborated, was not about Europe in itself, but rather a reaction to the democratic deficit, authoritarianism within the EU and bureaucrats who only care about their re-election.
