An update on China's recovering travel industry.
China and Australia agree to take further measures to facilitate the travel of people between the two countries
According to the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on March 20, local time, China and Australia held the seventh round of diplomatic and strategic dialogue, and agreed to take further measures to facilitate the travel of people between the two countries.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated that China is willing to work with Australia to further prepare for high-level exchanges between the two countries, comprehensively restart and make good use of consultation and dialogue mechanisms established in various fields, and give full play to complementary advantages. The two sides should continue to promote exchanges in education, culture, tourism, localities, and youth, and actively take measures to facilitate the travel of people between the two sides.
Tongcheng Travel releases stunning 2023 financial report
On March 19, Tongcheng Travel released its fourth-quarter and full-year performance report for 2023. The financial report shows that the company achieved an annual revenue of 11.896 billion yuan ($1.63 billion), with an adjusted net profit of 2.199 billion yuan ($304.7 million). In terms of user growth, Tongcheng Travel's annual paying users reached 235 million, a year-on-year increase of 25.2%, and a 54% increase compared to 2019, once again hitting a historic high.
The company's major performance indicators achieved better-than-expected growth, leading the industry in recovery speed. Financial data shows that while Tongcheng Travel maintains strong growth in core businesses such as transportation and accommodation, the proportion of other income (including tourism services and hotel management) in total revenue has significantly increased. This proportion has risen from 7% in 2019 to 16.5% in 2023. Other business income, with tourism services and hotel management as the core, has gradually become a new engine for the company's performance growth.
Raising 50 million yuan investment, before "losing it all gambling"?
Recently, news has been grabbing headlines around the disappearance of a mysterious proprietor of the Muzi Town Inn in Dali, known as Zhu, after raising nearly $7 million in investment. The outrage has mainly come from Zhu's hundreds of "shareholders", with the number of investors involved exceeding 400 and a total amount involved exceeding 50 million yuan.
On March 18th, an account named "Muzi Town Keng Ge" with IP location coming from India posted a video on Xiaohongshu, claiming that most of the investment had been lost due to gambling. According to the staff of the Economic Investigation Task Force of Dali Municipal Public Security Bureau, Zhu is suspected of illegally absorbing public deposits, and states that "the case is currently under further investigation."
Cathay Pacific cancels 786 flights within two months
Cathay Pacific Airlines has repeatedly and "unexpectedly" canceled flights during the New Year's Day to Lunar New Year holiday period. Official reports show that from December 28th of last year to February 29th of this year, Cathay Pacific canceled a total of 786 passenger flights within two months, accounting for about 4% of the total flights during the same period.
The report submitted by Cathay Pacific to the Civil Aviation Administration explains that the causes include internal planning issues and underestimation of the level of standby pilots. The Civil Aviation Administration assessed that Cathay Pacific Airlines' planning team lacks experience and digital capabilities, making it unable to fully predict the demand for crew resources.
Honghu Yiyu Travel the first to promote multi-country "borderless travel visas"
Recently, Honghu Yiyu, a high-end travel brand under Ctrip, took the lead in the industry to launch an exclusive visa product — the Borderless Travel Visa. The Borderless Travel Visa includes multiple visa services for 10 countries, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Turkey, Cuba, and Vietnam. In addition to the 10 countries where visas are issued, travelers can as a result also enjoy visa-free entry into 14 countries including the Philippines, Montenegro, Mexico, Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Chile, Peru, Papua New Guinea, Gibraltar, the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, Anguilla, and Ireland. Essentially, it's a set of materials to apply for visas for 10 countries and travel to 24 countries.
China's State Council calls to promote China's internationalisation and flight numbers
According to the General Office of the State Council's recently-issued action plan for further investment promotion, reform and opening up, facilitation of the travel of international business people is a leading priority. The action plan advocates providing convenience for foreign investors to apply for visas to China, and extend the validity period of visas for management personnel, technical personnel, their accompanying spouses, and minor children of foreign-invested enterprises to 2 years. It also aims to promote the accelerated recovery of international flight numbers at key aviation hubs such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.
Chinese online travel booking scale reaches 509 million
On March 22nd, the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) released the 53rd "China Internet Development Status Statistics Report" in Beijing. This report shows that entertainment and tourism consumption are accelerating; as of December 2023, the scale of online travel booking users reached 509 million, an increase of 86.29 million compared to December 2022, with a growth rate of 20.4%.
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