Nearly half of Gozitan businesses involved in tourism registered a higher turnover in the third quarter of this year compared with the same period in 2013, a study found.

The Gozo Tourism Association’s quarterly study found that 43 per cent of respondents said they had performed just as well this year as in 2013, while 14 per cent noticed a dip in performance.

Hotels, self-catered accommodation, restaurants, diving schools, transport services, attractions, destination management firms and tour agencies were consulted.

When asked about the main factors limiting their business, a third highlighted operating costs and a quarter felt a human resources shortage was the main obstacle.

The same amount felt poor demand was the main drawback and 14 per cent said administrative bureaucracy was the main stumbling block.

The majority of the respondents rated the performance of the Gozitan domestic market (local clients) positively; half described it as fair; a third said it was good and 11 per cent rated it as very good.

Despite the positive review of the domestic market, there seemed to be little improvement over 2013. In fact, three quarters said they had just as many local clients as last year.

Asked about the foreign market’s effect on performance, one in 10 deemed it poor, with the same amount saying it was fair.

On the other hand, nearly two-thirds said the foreign market was satisfactory and 18 per cent felt it was very good.

When asked to rate the revenue generated during the nine months of 2014 when compared to the same period of 2013, a third felt the effect was on an equal footing, and half thought their performance was better.