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HSBC stressed that tourism will be a new source of growth to alleviate some of the challenges this year, especially now that Vietnam’s largest visitor market – China – has reopened.
Chinese tourists come to Cam Ranh on the morning of the 2nd day of the Lunar New Year. Photo: Xuan Hoat.
In its latest report, HSBC called tourism “part of the rescue” for Vietnam’s economy this year. Amid trade troubles, economists at the financial institution say tourism will be a major industry and a new source of growth.
After Vietnam’s reopening in March 2022, domestic tourism has made a strong recovery, but international tourism, which accounts for 60% of tourism revenue, is not very active. The number of international visitors was only about 3.6 million last year, equal to 20% of the 2019 result.
“This underscores the significant potential for the services sector to continue to grow amid slowing global demand for goods,” said HSBC.
According to this unit, one of the reasons to expect a stronger recovery in the tourism industry is that China is open again. While the recovery may be gradual, the impact on Vietnam’s economy will be significant in many ways.
HSBC analyzed that despite spending less than European and American tourists, Chinese tourists still spend more and stay longer in Vietnam than most Asian tourists. With a large share of Chinese tourists (30%), Vietnam, after Thailand, can be a major beneficiary in the region when this “push” is received.
“If flight restrictions can be resolved and visa requirements eased further, we believe the return rate of Chinese tourists will reach 50-80% of its pre-epidemic level (3-4.5 million turns), a target within range of Vietnam”, experts at HSBC Forecast.
Importance of Chinese tourists in each ASEAN market. Source: CEIC, HSBC.
Data from the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam shows that Vietnam welcomed 2.3 million international passengers by air in the first month of this year, a 10% increase from December 2022 and significantly more than the same period last year. However, of these, Chinese tourists are still a minority, mainly visitors from Korea, Japan, USA, West Asia, Europe…
In this report, HSBC also believes that the tourism industry should explore new markets rather than relying too much on China, with various initiatives such as implementing promotional programs to pave the way for entry into emerging markets such as India – a country with a growing footprint in Vietnam’s international tourism industry.
At the same time, the easing of visa policies, along with the diversification of tourism products, can also help Vietnam increase its attractiveness to world tourists. HSBC proposes to develop sports tourism, including golf tourism, as the goal of Hanoi city.
In 2023, the government aims to attract 102 million domestic tourists and 8 million international tourists, with tourism revenues expected to increase by more than 30%, although still lower than in 2019.
Recent statistics from the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism show that the supply of quality accommodation facilities is growing, with the number of 4- to 5-star hotels increasing by an average of 12% per year before the pandemic.
Currently, a number of global hotel chains are actively opening new facilities in Vietnam, such as La Festa Phu Quoc, Curio Collection by Hilton, scheduled to open mid-year, or Marriott International planning to add 9,000 rooms from the current 3,300 .
“With national ambitions and ongoing development projects, the outlook for Vietnam’s international tourism industry remains fundamentally positive,” concludes HSBC.
@ Zing News
