A record 38 million tourists visit Spain in first 7 months of 2015; weak euro given credit

Authorities say Spain has seen a record 38 million tourists in the first seven months of the year as a weak euro and security issues in other beach resort nations like Tunisia make it a more attractive destination.

The state tourism office said Friday the January-through-July figure was 4.7 percent up on the record set in the same period in 2014. British tourist arrivals, at nearly nine million, topped the list for the period.

The tourism office said July saw a record number of 8.8 million visitors, up 6.3 percent on July 2014.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says the country expects a record 68 million tourists for all of 2015, three million more than the record set in 2014.

Tourism represents about 11 percent of Spain's GDP.