For our updates from 27 June click here.
We start each day’s update with this message from DFS Group when the retailer reopened its stores in Macau on 20 February after a 13-day closure.
Published in Chinese, it translates as:
No winter can’t be passed
No spring will not come
26 June
International
South Korea
Greater China
25 June
Asia Pacific
Preliminary May 2020 traffic figures released today by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) showed that the COVID-19 pandemic continued to weigh heavily on international air passenger and cargo markets. The travel and tourism sectors are being crippled by widespread lockdowns and travel restrictions, AAPA said.
In aggregate, the region’s airlines carried only 785,000 passengers in May, a -97.5% collapse compared to the same month last year. The slump in demand, combined with a -92.5% fall in available seat capacity, led to a 50.4 percentage point decline in the average international passenger load factor to just 28.4% for the month.
US
Greater China
South Korea
International
24 June
International
Greater China
South Korea
23 June
Greater China
South Korea
International
22 June
International
Greater China
South Korea
21 June
Greater China
South Korea
International
20 June
International
South Korea
Greater China
19 June
International
South Korea
Greater China
18 June
International
South Korea
Greater China
17 June
US/Canada
The border between the US and Canada will remain closed to non-essential travel for at least another 30 days.
The restrictions were set to expire on 21 June, but Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said this would now be extended until at least 21 July.
Barbara Barrett, the Executive Director of the trade body representing Canadian border stores, the Frontier Duty Free Association (FDFA), had said on 3 June that she expected the closure to be extended beyond 21 June.
“Until the border opens, only 25% of our stores are open and those that are open are only serving essential workers moving across the border for supply chain. That means there’s very little traffic and revenues are reduced for even the stores that are open,” she added.
Despite #economies opening up, the border remains to closed for the foreseeable future. Land border #DutyFree stores require adequate and effective supports from the Canadian Government if they are to continue to operate. https://t.co/n4M2hXMjSL
— FDFA Insider (@FDFAInsider) June 11, 2020
Greater China
South Korea
International
16 June
China
Beijing has locked down 29 communities as more cases of COVID-19 are confirmed in the city.
Parts of the Chinese capital have been fenced off, with security checkpoints set up, and indoor sporting and entertainment venues have been ordered to close.
High-risk people – such as close contacts of diagnosed cases – are prevented from leaving the city. Taxis have also been banned from leaving the Beijing area.
Global Times is reporting the cluster of infections has been described as “very grim” by the Beijing government.
A top epidemiologist with China’s Center for Disease Control & Prevention said the next three days will be critical for Beijing to curb the outbreak.
World Health Organization (WHO) Health Emergencies Programme Executive Director Michael Ryan commented: “A cluster like this is a concern and it needs to be investigated and controlled. That’s exactly what Chinese authorities are doing.”
International
Greater China
South Korea
15 June
Germany
Frankfurt Airport welcomed just 272,826 passengers in May, a decline of -95.6% year-on-year. For the first five months of the year, passenger traffic slumped -57.2%. This trend continued to be driven by travel restrictions and plummeting demand in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, said airport owner Fraport.
Fraport’s Group airports worldwide have also been buffeted by the COVID-19 pandemic. During the reporting period, most of them were still subject to comprehensive restrictions on travel and some remained under complete lockdowns imposed by local authorities. The passenger volumes were between 89.5% and 99.9% beneath the levels of May last year.
Only Xi’an Airport in China experienced a significant recovery in May, serving 2.2 million passengers – a drop of -44.4% year-on-year.
Greater China
[Click on the icon to view Chinese state-controlled media Global Times Editor in Chief Hu Xijin saying that Beijing will control the epidemic at a lower cost to society]
South Korea
International
For our earlier daily reports dating back to mid-January click here.