Business visits to London increased by 8.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2011, according to the latest provisional figures from the International Passenger Survey (IPS).

Nearly 700,000 visits were made in total during July to September of last year, representing an increase of more than 5 per cent year-on-year.

London’s number one business market, the USA, continued to drive the sector upwards in the quarter with a 6 per cent increase in corporate visitors. Other major business markets including France and Germany also performed very strongly.

Visitor expenditure saw a year-on-year increase of 12.4 per cent, with each visitor spending an average of £633 – up from £574 in 2010. This generated an additional £300m for London’s tourism economy.

Gordon Innes, CEO, London & Partners said: “The solid evidence of sustained recovery is evident in these latest results for the capital.”