Following the global shutdown of the exhibition industry due to the COVID pandemic, 19 of the world’s largest exhibitions markets are experiencing a robust recovery and are poised to surpass their 2019 size by 7% by 2024, according to the latest projections from Globex 2023, the exhibition industry’s annual report published by Stax.

Now in its 15th edition, Globex – the global exhibition organizing market: assessment and forecast to 2025 – analyzed 19 markets, including the U.S., China, U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Brazil, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Hong Kong, Turkey, Mexico, India, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Macau and the Philippines. 

These 19 markets are expected to be valued at $26.5 billion in 2023, down 5% from $28.0 billion in 2019, according to Stax, a global management consulting firm serving corporate and private equity clients. The exhibitions market is projected to reach $30 billion by 2024 and $32.5 billion by 2025, according to Stax, which acquired AMR International, a strategy consulting company for the events industry that launched the Globex report, in 2022.

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“From a nominal perspective, the exhibition industry is close to where it was before the pandemic,” said Globex 2023 Co-Editor Athan Siah. “This is also true when we look at organizers’ calendars and the volume of new launches in 2022-23. The next important question pertains to when the majority of shows will recover to their pre-COVID scale. According to our Globex 2023 report, we forecast global NSM (net square meters) volumes to reach 100% of 2019 levels by 2025.”

Compared to the previous year’s edition, Stax’s forecasts have been largely revised upwards, due to four key highlights:

1. Economic Stabilization: The impacts of the European energy crisis and escalating inflation have receded, providing a more stable economic backdrop for the exhibition sector.
2. China's Policy Shift: China has lifted its zero-COVID policy ahead of schedule, opening opportunities for international exhibitions and trade shows within the country.
3. Recessionary Fears Abated: Recessionary fears have been assuaged in most major markets, bolstering confidence and investment in exhibitions.
4. Positive Industry Outlook: Coupled with the strong performance of face-to-face exhibitions, the dampening of these headwinds has resulted in a more positive outlook for the industry overall.

“Regardless of when exactly full real recovery happens, one thing is for sure: the enduring value of face-to-face has been proven once again,” Siah said. “Digital and data will undoubtedly play a complementary role, but they will remain that – complements which strengthen the value proposition of face-to-face exhibitions.”