Band 7+: You should spend about 20 minutes on this task. The graph below shows the number of overseas visitors who came to the UK for different purposes between 1989 and 2009. Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. You should write at least 150 words.

The line graph illustrates the number of international tourists visiting the UK for holiday, visiting friends and relatives, and business purposes from 1989 to 2009. Overall, there was an upward trend in the number of visitors for all three purposes over the specified period. Business emerged as the most prevalent reason for visits to the UK, while visiting friends and relatives accounted for the least.

In 1989, approximately 3.5 million foreign tourists visited the UK to meet friends and relatives. This figure gradually increased, reaching a peak of 7 million between 2007 and 2008, before declining to 6 million by the end of the period. Similarly, the number of tourists visiting for holiday purposes started at 5 million in 1989, dipped to 4 million in 1991, and then followed a similar trend to that of visiting friends and relatives, peaking at 8 million before dropping to 7 million.

Business visits started at around 6.5 million in 1989. The number remained steady between 1991 and 1993, before peaking at 9 million in 1996. Despite fluctuations thereafter, the figure recovered to its peak by 2009.