"Hotel Lotte Hit by COVID-19, Operating Loss of 497.6 Billion KRW Last Year... Returned to Deficit"

Sales of 3.8445 trillion KRW, Half Compared to Previous Year
"Will Develop Various Products Targeting Domestic Customers"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] Hotel Lotte posted an operating loss of 500 billion KRW last year as both its duty-free and hotel businesses struggled due to the impact of COVID-19.

Hotel Lotte announced in its business report on the 31st that its sales last year amounted to 3.8445 trillion KRW, a 48.0% decrease compared to the previous year. During the same period, the operating loss was 497.6 billion KRW, turning from an operating profit of 318.3 billion KRW in the previous year to a deficit. This marks the first annual operating loss for Hotel Lotte in three years since 2017.

Sales in the hotel business division fell 45.4% to 495 billion KRW. Sales in the duty-free business division dropped 48.4% to 3.1494 trillion KRW. Sales in the World business division, which operates Lotte World, plunged 60.0% to 124.5 billion KRW.

Hotel Lotte explained, "Performance was poor due to a decline in sales at domestic and overseas hotels and duty-free shops caused by COVID-19," adding that "the number of foreign visitors to Korea last year decreased by more than 86% compared to the previous year, which also had a significant impact."

This year, the company plans to revitalize sales by developing various products targeting domestic customers. Hotel Lotte stated, "From the point when herd immunity is formed through vaccinations in 2021, explosive recovery in tourism demand linked to pent-up consumption is expected."

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