Coronavirus vs Sars: Singapore’s hotel sector to shake off epidemic quickly, but social unrest will weigh on Hong Kong
- Recovery of Singapore’s hotel industry will be faster than Hong Kong’s because they are less dependent on Chinese tourists: Magnificent Hotel
- Singapore government has set aside US$4.6 billion to help mitigate the coronavirus impact on various businesses and jobs
Singapore’s hotel sector is expected to take a significant hit from the Covid-19 outbreak in the short-term and recover just as quickly as after Sars in 2003. Operators in Hong Kong, however, may not be that lucky and will have to wait until the social unrest is resolved, according to analysts.
Christine Li, head of research for Singapore and Southeast Asia at Cushman & Wakefield, said the disruption from the outbreak on Singapore’s hospitality industry is expected to be short-lived even though the impact might be deeper in the near term.
William Cheng Shun-ho, chairman and CEO of Magnificent Hotel Investments, felt the time taken for the hotel sector to get back to normal in Singapore and Hong Kong would vary.
“The recovery of Singapore’s [hotel industry] will be faster than Hong Kong’s because they are less dependent on China,” said Cheng, whose company owns nine hotels, including Best Western in Hong Kong.
Chinese tourists accounted for 78.3 per cent of the 55.9 million total visitors to Hong Kong in 2019. In comparison, they made up about 20 per cent of the 19.2 million visitors to Singapore last year.