International arrivals to the U.S. declined slightly in October 2016 compared with October 2015, continuing a downward trend in inbound tourism that began earlier in 2016.

The U.S. Department of Commerce in Washington, D.C., said Monday that 6.6 million international visitors traveled to the U.S. last October, down 4,955 visits from the same month in 2015.

Overall for the first 10 months of 2016, international visits declined 2 percent compared with the same period in 2015, the Commerce Department said.

Experts have said that a strong U.S. dollar and lackluster economies elsewhere have made it more expensive for travelers to vacation here, leading some to choose destinations elsewhere.

Some sectors of the travel industry have warned that anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies from the Trump administration could exacerbate the downward trend that began last year. But it takes months for arrivals data to accurately be compiled from all U.S. international airports and border crossings, so whether the downward trend continued into 2017 won’t be known immediately.

In October 2016, top inbound markets continued to be Canada and Mexico, according to the new data. Visits from China and South Korea were up but visits from the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Australia and Brazil were down.

(AP)