CEBU CITY, Philippines ? Tourism Secretary Joseph Ace Durano expressed confidence that rising fuel prices and the slowdown in the US economy would have minor impact on tourist arrivals in the Philippines.

Durano said tourist arrivals increased seven percent in the first half of the year, which he said meant the target of 3.5 million tourists for 2008 could be achieved.

?Based on the trend for the past two years, the growth will be within 7-9 percent,? he said. ?If we reach eight percent, we will hit close to 3.4 million [tourists].?

He said the Department of Tourism (DoT) strategy of promoting the Philippines mainly in the regional markets had paid off.

?Our marketing strategy has been justified, as we focused 70 percent of our efforts on North Asia, Southeast Asia and then India, with the remaining 30 percent on Europe,? he said.

Specifically, the focus over the past years has been on South Korea, China and Japan.

?Despite the economic slowdown, we are still achieving respectable growth rate because we have invested heavily in the region as well as in the emerging markets, such as Russia,? Durano said.

He said tourists from these countries were considering destinations closer to home rather than long-haul destinations, to save on travel costs.

The DoT reported that tourist arrivals in May reached 260,567, compared with 243,951 a year earlier.

Arrivals from January to May totaled 1.372 million, up 7.4 percent from 1.278 million in the same period last year. Arrivals from Asia made up 52.2 percent of the total, with Koreans at 19 percent and Japanese at 11 percent. China contributed 5.4 percent.

Durano said the DoT would continue focusing on the regional market although it would also do promotions in Europe, including Scandinavian countries, from which he said the DoT recorded a 22-percent increase in arrivals.

The tourism department reported increases in arrivals from Hong Kong (16.0 percent), Taiwan (3.4 percent), Australia (13.0 percent) and New Zealand (12.0 percent).

Durano said arrivals from Russia rose 34 percent and from France, 20 percent.

He estimated tourist spending at $1.5 billion in the first half of the year. Edited by INQUIRER.net