60% Increase in Chinese Hotel Bookings... Qingming Festival Temporary Demand(?)

SCMP Cites Trip.com Hotel, Transportation, and Ticket Booking Data
COVID-19 Uncertainty Persists, More Time Needed to Restore Consumer Confidence

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Young-shin] The domestic market in China is showing signs of recovery centered on the outdoor industry such as travel, according to a report by the Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 8th (local time). Meaningful data has emerged from China's travel industry, which was hit hard by the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

SCMP cited reservation data from Trip.com Group, an online travel booking platform headquartered in China, reporting this trend. According to Trip.com, hotel reservations during the Qingming Festival holiday period (April 4?6) increased by 60% compared to the peak period of COVID-19. Additionally, transportation bookings increased by more than 50% during this period, and ticket sales for major tourist attractions more than doubled.

SCMP also reported that online sales on the e-commerce site Pinduoduo increased. SCMP explained that since mid-March, Pinduoduo's daily online orders have exceeded 50 million, an increase of more than 60% compared to the previous year. SCMP introduced that online orders for color cosmetics such as lipstick and eyeshadow have notably increased.

Jang Kailin, an analyst at Beijing Dongxing Securities, said, "Since the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases is not increasing, consumption is expected to steadily rise," adding, "The Chinese government's consumption promotion policies will also support this trend." However, SCMP noted that it remains to be seen whether this consumption growth trend can continue. The spread of COVID-19 is still ongoing in major countries such as the United States, Europe, and Japan. It could be just a temporary demand spike during the Qingming Festival.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) previously warned that a global recession could occur as major countries implement lockdown policies to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Liang, an analyst at Galaxy Securities in China, forecasted that "China's consumption growth in the second quarter will be 'limited'." Chen Ke, senior partner at Roland Berger China headquartered in Shanghai, said, "Uncertainty about the pandemic remains," adding, "It will take more time for consumer confidence to recover." According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China's retail sales decreased by 20.5% over the two months from January to February this year. In particular, despite subsidy incentives, automobile sales plunged by a staggering 79% in February compared to the previous year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.