Fiscal and monetary policies supporting the tourism industry during COVID-19

Purpose Since the first moment of the pandemic, national and international travel restrictions are in place to reduce human mobility. This actual situation makes the tourism industry one of the areas most affected by the pandemic. Many microeconomic factors (households and firms) were adversely affected by the pandemic, and this situation brought about macroeconomic contraction. Naturally, governments seek to sustain production and employment by offering financial packages to reduce the negative economic effects of the pandemic. Given such information, the study aims to examine the financial policies implemented by countries to support the tourism industry during the pandemic period. Design/methodology/approach Content analysis, which is a technique of qualitative research method, was applied in the analysis process of the data. Assessments were made based on data published by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) on the financial and monetary policies implemented by countries to support the tourism industry. The data were analyzed using the MAXQDA qualitative analysis program. Findings According to the results of the study, countries support the tourism industry financially in terms of credit and liquidity. Also, tourism investments are encouraged by tax breaks and low interest rates. Originality/value It is aimed to determine what issues the financial and monetary policies published by the UNWTO focus on to solve the problems in the tourism sector. In this way, it is thought that the study will reveal the problems experienced by tourism enterprises during the pandemic period with a holistic perspective.