MADRID (AP) — The coronavirus pandemic has pulverized Spain’s key tourism industry with tourist arrivals dropping to 19 million last year, from the near 84 million visitors the previous year. The decrease snapped a seven-year trend of annual records and a decade of yearly increases. The National Statistics Institute said Wednesday that income from foreign tourism plunged to just 20 billion euros ($24 billion) from the 92 billion euros received in 2019. The private news agency Europa Press said the country had not received as few visitors from abroad since 1969. Prior to the pandemic, tourism represented some 11% of Spain’s economy. The country has long ranked among the top three tourism destinations along with France and the United States.
