'Corona Emergency' Lotte Duty Free Temporarily Closes Gimhae Airport Store Following Gimpo Airport

Temporary Closure Until the 31st of This Month
Significant Reduction in Flight Operations at Gimhae International Airport
Extension of Closure to Be Discussed Later

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] Lotte Duty Free Gimhae Airport Branch announced on the 21st that it will temporarily close until the 31st.

Lotte Duty Free decided to temporarily close the Gimhae Airport branch, which operates on the 2nd floor of the departure hall at Gimhae International Airport, from the 22nd to the 31st. Whether the closure will be extended will be re-discussed with Korea Airports Corporation considering the flight schedule trends.

A Lotte Duty Free official said, "This measure was taken due to the decrease in passengers as the number of flights at Gimhae International Airport dropped to about 1 to 2 per day," adding, "Since the number of flights is variable, we will monitor the situation and coordinate the reopening schedule."

As a result, both duty-free stores operated by Lotte Duty Free at regional international airports have entered temporary closure. Lotte Duty Free had already suspended operations and temporarily closed the duty-free store inside the international terminal at Gimpo International Airport on the 12th, and the reopening date has not been decided.

With the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and the resulting entry restrictions imposed by various countries, international routes have been blocked and passenger numbers have sharply declined. Consequently, regional international airports, which mainly serve Asian routes including China and Japan, have also been affected.