He made five trips to Italy this year

Dear native English speakers,

I know you can say (a), but when do you use sentences like (b)? At the end of the year?
(a) He has made five trips to Italy this year.
(b) He made five trips to Italy this year.

Hirashin

They are nearly identical, and can be used in identical situations.
I suppose (b) implies that the year is coming to an end, and so there is an assumption of finality in that statement: You wouldn't expect to hear that statement when the year has just started. It is a statement that assumes the travels to Italy are finished for this year, as you guessed.