With the Covid-19 casualties crossing the thousand mark this week, the impact of the dreaded virus on the world economy is devastating.Covid-19 had caused a Chinese taboo-in the western market, a mindset which the US had long been longing for. With the WHO declaring a Global medical emergency, many trusted trade partners of China had imposed a ban on Chinese imports affecting its economy.
The Chinese tourism industry is now wriggling with both outbound and inbound tourists canceling their travel plans.online travel companies like Expedia and Tripadvisor are already forecasting a drop in revenues, which could ripple into everything from hotels to retail outlets abroad. According to estimates by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), Chinese outbound tourism will not recover to pre-coronavirus levels until the second quarter of 2021 and will cause a global loss of about US$80 billion.
Thailand which depends on Chinese tourists recorded a steep fall in tourist revenue for the last two months which could be directly linked to the corona epidemic. Mainland tourists to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) will drop by about 30 to 40 percent, leading to a loss in tourism revenue of US$7 billion, as per data from EIU. As of January 26, Chinese outbound flights booked worldwide from January 21 to February 17 fell 13.8 percent compared to the year before, according to ForwardKeys. Bookings for March and April are already down by more than half, and consumers are delaying travel plans for the summer.
World-renowned luxury hotel chain Hilton has already closed 150 of its hotels across China. With the current impact of Covid-19, the business will not rebound for as long as six to 12 months. “It could cost Hilton US$25 to US$50 million, and knock half a percentage point off-net growth for the full year”, said Chris Nasetta, CEO of the Hilton group.
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