The United States received fewer tourists in the first quarter of 2017

Not as many tourists traveled to The United States for leisure purposes in the first few months of this year compared to the same period last year. Figures from the Department Of Commerce show a drop in the total number of tourists visiting the United States in February and March of this year. The low number could be the result of trump's proposed immigration policies.

Tourist statistics

The Department of Commerce reported that the total number of tourists who arrived in the U.S in the first quarter were 15,836,590 while total year-to-date arrivals were 22,232,556. February arrivals were down by 5.8 percent while March arrivals were down by 8.3 percent. Total visitor numbers in the first quarter of this year were also down by 4.2 percent. According to the report, Canada was the U.S.A's highest source of tourists with over 1.8 million Canadians entering the United States on tourist visas in the first quarter of this month. Arrivals from Mexico in the first quarter of this year were 1,494,484 while tourists from Europe totaled 1,420,035.

Visitor numbers from other countries totaled to 3,052,944.

Trump's immigration policies

Low tourist arrivals could have been a result of Trump's immigration policies such as the building of the Mexican border wall and a ban on people from six majority Muslim countries. Trump also signed "Executive Order 13768"; an order that increased enforcement against illegal immigrants in the U.S. The president also ordered foreign embassies to scrutinize visa applications for those who want to enter the United States. The measures include scrutinizing applicants' social media accounts that have been used in the last five years, a list of where applicants traveled in the past decade as well as their 15-year biographical information.

Foreigners views of the United States

On the June 26 of this month, Pewglobal conducted a survey on a foreign audience about their opinion of the United States after Trump was sworn in as president. Findings from the study showed that foreigners felt more confidence in Obama before he left office at 64 percent, compared to 22 percent confidence they have in Trump after he took office. 64 percent of people surveyed had higher views of the U.S at 64 percent before Obama left office compared to 49 percent of people who showed favorable views of the U.S under Trump's presidency. According to the Pewglobal report, Trump scored worst in countries like Sweden, Mexico, Jordan, and Spain.