Will the Number of Chinese Entrants Increase... Big-Spending Travelers vs. COVID-19 Spread

Chinese Government Abolishes Quarantine and PCR for Arrivals
Industry 'Optimistic' About Influx of 'Big-Spending' Chinese Tourists
Concerns Rise Over Potential Increase in COVID-19 Cases from China

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] As the Chinese government officially announced the transition to 'With Corona' by abandoning the high-intensity quarantine policy of 'Zero COVID' and lifting border closures, expectations in related industries about China's 'reopening' (resumption of economic activities) are growing.

However, concerns are also emerging that the surge in COVID-19 cases originating from China could adversely affect the domestic COVID-19 outbreak, prompting quarantine authorities to announce quarantine measures related to the situation in China.

The Chinese government, which has effectively abandoned the Zero COVID policy that lasted nearly three years, is accelerating the return to normal life. On the 26th, China removed entry barriers by abolishing facility quarantine and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for overseas arrivals starting January 8 next year, and on the following day, the 27th, announced plans to gradually normalize the issuance of ordinary passports to its citizens.

On the 26th, ahead of the first year-end after the social distancing measures were lifted, Incheon Airport Terminal 1 was bustling with travelers. The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. / Yeongjongdo - Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Due to the relaxation of quarantine measures by Chinese authorities, interest among Chinese people in overseas travel is also increasing. According to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) and Bloomberg, since the significant easing of quarantine measures on the 26th, searches for overseas travel destinations have exploded across China. Chinese online travel agency Ctrip.com reported a tenfold increase in searches for foreign tourist destinations, and China's travel service platforms saw a real-time search volume for international flight tickets increase by 850%.

In line with China's return to normal life, the number of flights is also expected to increase. Currently, the Korean and Chinese governments are reportedly pushing to increase the number of round-trip flights between Korea and China from 65 per week to 100 per week starting next month (50 flights each by airlines from both countries).

As a large influx of 'big-spending' Chinese customers is anticipated, expectations in related industries are rising. On the 28th, according to the Korea Exchange, stocks of Hotel Shilla, Shinsegae, and Lotte Shopping, which operate duty-free shops, rose by 2%, 5.2%, and 1.9% respectively compared to the previous day. Stocks of Air Busan, Jeju Air, and Asiana Airlines also increased by 8.9%, 4.1%, and 3.97% respectively on the same day compared to the previous day.

As the winter resurgence of COVID-19 continues, a citizen is being tested at the temporary screening clinic at Seoul Station on the 26th. The Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that as of midnight on the same day, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases increased by 25,545, bringing the total to 28,684,600. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

However, concerns have been raised that the surge in COVID-19 cases in China could impact the domestic COVID-19 outbreak. In fact, the proportion of confirmed cases imported from China among overseas arrivals has sharply increased.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) on the 28th, among 1,750 overseas imported confirmed cases last month, 19 people (1.1%) had entered from China, but from the 1st to the 27th of this month, among 1,777 overseas imported confirmed cases, the number of confirmed cases originating from China (253) accounted for 14.2%, showing an increase.

Meanwhile, as concerns about arrivals from China grow, the government plans to announce related quarantine measures on the 30th.

Currently, quarantine authorities have designated China as a targeted quarantine country and strengthened monitoring of arrivals by lowering the fever threshold from 37.5 degrees Celsius to 37.3 degrees Celsius. Since the 16th of this month, they have been monitoring the introduction of new variant viruses through whole genome sequencing analysis of confirmed cases arriving from China.

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