Shorthaul markets showing strong arrivals growth in November included Mainland China, from where the number rose by 16.6%. This can be partly attributed to relaxation of policies concerning travel from the Mainland to Hong Kong.

Arrivals from Singapore also rose, by 12.1%, in November, reflecting the favorable response to a range of Hong Kong promotions carried out recently by the Singapore travel trade.

Indian arrivals showed an increase of 11.8% for the month, with higher rates for domestic travel making overseas trips more attractive, while relaxed visa policies helped to boost arrivals from Taiwan in November by 6.4%.

From the longhaul markets, arrivals from Canada grew by 27.3%, helped partly by promotions and lower traveling costs.

Arrivals from Germany grew by 15.1% in November, with the relatively low cost of travel to Asia helping to boost travel.

The number of visitors from the UK rose by 11.5%, helped by the strong currency, while the healthy economy and positive consumer sentiment towards overseas travel helped to increase arrivals from the USA by 11.3%.

Markets showing a decrease in arrivals in November all reflected the effects of weak economies, increased domestic travel and/or keen competition from other Asian destinations. Those markets included South Korea (down by 29.8%), New Zealand (down by 12.5%), Switzerland (down by 12.5%), France (down by 12.0%), the Philippines (down by 10.7%), Australia (down by 9.0%) and Malaysia (down by 7.7%). The decline in arrivals from Japan continued to ease in November, with the market registering a moderate fall of just 7.4%.

Over the 11-month period of January to November, arrivals to Hong Kong reached a total of 8.6 million, a drop of 9.7% over the same period last year. Nevertheless, Taiwan, India, New Zealand and Canada and Mainland China all registered cumulative growth over the period,
in a range of between 0.6% and 13.3%.