Chinese tourists seen to hit 200 M by 2020 opening growth opportunities for Phl travel, shopping sectors

MANILA, Philippines - Tourists from mainland China seeking new overseas destinations to visit are expected to double and their spending to triple by 2020, providing tremendous growth opportunities for Philippine tourism and related sectors as well as for small and medium-sized enterprises.

Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia (CLSA), an Asian investment and brokerage advisory firm, estimates that by 2020 outbound mainland tourists will reach 200 million from the 100 million recorded in 2013.

Their spending is also seen to increase threefold, from about RMB500 billion ($80.2 billion) to RMB1.4 trillion ($224.7 billion) during the next six years.

In a recent survey, CLSA polled 1,000 Chinese travelers across 41 cities in the mainland and found that 64 percent were interested in traveling overseas in the next 12 months and 67 percent intended to increase their travel budget.

China’s so-called Billion Boomer generation, which consists of the fast-growing middle class, lists travel among its top aspirations, said the report. The surge in mainland Chinese tourist growth and disposable spending is driven by several factors, including $8,000 per-capita gross domestic product (GDP), longer annual leave, more countries relaxing visa restrictions for Chinese nationals, and increasingly polluted and crowded tourist destinations in China.

The explosive tourism growth “offers immense opportunity for countries to benefit from Chinese tourists’ desire for new experiences-from sightseeing to food, to hotels, to gaming and shopping,” said Aaron Fischer, head of consumer and gaming research, and author of the report, entitled “Chinese Tourists-Exploring New Frontiers.”

It will have a significant impact on airlines, gaming, luxury goods, medical tourism, hotels, property, and cruise ships, particularly as travel habits evolve.

The Internet will benefit as experienced travelers increasingly choose to travel independently and book their own flights and hotels as well as make their own arrangements.

Hong Kong and Macau continue to be the top international travel destinations, and the United States and France are dream destinations, receiving 1.5 and 1.3 million mainland Chinese visitors, respectively, in 2012.

But more and more Chinese holidaymakers are also seeking more exotic destinations, and eyeing Asian countries like Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea, and Singapore as among their top destinations in the next three years.

Shopping, especially for luxury goods, remains an important travel activity of mainland China travelers. Notably, Chinese consumers drove the expansion of the global luxury goods sector by 41 percent between 2009 and 2012, said CLSA.

Mainland Chinese are starting to see well-known designer brands as “common,” and are seeking out more exclusive or local brands that cannot be readily purchased in China.

The survey found that 80 percent of tourists are buying local skincare, makeup, perfume, and apparel products from local specialty shops, compared to 60 percent buying products at downtown or duty-free airport stores.