Even if the coronavirus outbreak ends quickly, the disruption in the supply chain will affect trade, tourism and confidence.
ICAO forecast a decline in global traffic of 16.4 million passengers, the hotel industry could end up having to deal with the virus impact for the next 12 months.
Singapore expects visitor arrivals to drop 25%-30% this year due to the virus, OYO has brought in 8,500 more rooms in China, and more for the day.
The toll on travel and hospitality could be worse than during the SARS epidemic when Chinese travelers were a smaller group than they are today.
For travel brands, offering thoughtful communications and assistance to both travelers and corporate partners at the time will be much appreciated.
Customers are moving towards self-service options, with 55% of the respondents preferring to hear about travel disruption via digital communications rather than on the phone.
OYO is firing thousands of staff across China and India; Six Flags is struggling with its planned parks in China and might scrap plans to complete them.
Sino-US trade frictions did not affect the variation of China’s tourist arrivals from the US, which grew 7.4% in 2018, 4.6 percentage points higher than that in 2017.
