National tourism revenue reached 28.68 billion yuan ($4.16 billion) for the long weekend ending Monday, just 60.6% of pre-pandemic levels in 2019, according to China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism. did. Pictured are visitors to the Nantong Intercontinental Green Expo Park in Jiangsu Province in September. 11, 2022.
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BEIJING – China’s tourism sector ended another public holiday with revenues significantly lower than before the pandemic hit.
National tourism revenue for the three-day Mid-Autumn Festival reached 28.68 billion yuan ($4.16 billion), just 60.6% of 2019’s pre-pandemic levels, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism said on Monday. organized the This number has decreased by 22.8% compared to last year.
The ministry said the 73.4 million tourist visits were about 17% lower than last year’s figure and only recovered to 72.6% of 2019’s level.
Ting Lu, chief China economist at Nomura, noted that tourism numbers were down more than during the last official holiday in early June.
“The deterioration in business activity is mainly due to tightened Covid control measures, as individuals were advised to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel during the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday (October 1-7),” he said. dated Monday. China’s next public holiday will be in October.
Chinese tourism fell in early 2020 after being hit by the pandemic. Domestic tourism revenue for the entire past year About halfway through 2019, according to the Ministry of Tourism.
This year, the figures for the first six months showed a decrease of about 28% compared to the same period in 2021. Since Shanghai’s two-month quarantine ended in June, China has been battling outbreaks across the country, including across the country. Hainan resort island.
This year, the Mid-Autumn Festival officially started on Saturday, the official holiday that lasts until Monday.
People didn’t tend to go to movie theaters even though they didn’t travel far. The long weekend grossed 370 million yuan ($53.44 million), the lowest since 2017, according to movie ticket website Maoyan.
The data showed that the number of visits to cinemas – about 9.2 million – was the lowest since 2013, despite a more than three-fold increase in the number of movie screenings.
Online shopping: the brilliant place
However, online shopping has stalled, at least in terms of volume.
China’s postal administration said it handled about 1.8 billion packages during the holiday, the same as last year. The 2021 figures were more than 90% of 2019 levels, according to the official report. The 2019 comparison has not been published this year.
Last week, China’s National Health Commission encouraged people to stay on vacation and avoid large group events.
The commission stressed that when moving between states, travelers must show negative virus tests received within the last 48 hours – at least as is common practice for some regions. The health authority said this Covid policy will continue until October. 31, with subsequent amendments as necessary.
Set by the capital Beijing will host a historic political gathering next month, reported that infections have been linked to two universities and one high school in the city in the past few days. Business and social activities in the city remain largely unaffected.
However, a city in neighboring Hebei province said it would shut down for four days starting Tuesday, according to state media, due to a local Covid infection linked to Beijing.
This month, the southwestern city of Chengdu, known as a panda hub, ordered people to stay indoors while authorities carried out mass virus testing. Restrictions have begun to ease in the past few days, but restaurants are still not allowing people to dine in, according to the city government.
Government meeting on holidays
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang presided over a special meeting on the economy on Monday, while the public was still celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival, according to state media. According to the report, four vice-premiers of China also participated.
National economic growth slowed to a pace of 2.5% in the first half of the year and well below the official target of around 5.5%.
In addition to the drag from Covid control, there is a slowdown in China’s huge real estate market. Last week, trade data for August showed that as global demand eased, exports will likely not support domestic growth as much as before.
China will release August retail sales, industrial production and investment data on Friday.
