THE Philippines is expected to lose P42 billion in tourism revenues from China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan due to outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) from February to April, Tourism secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said Wednesday.
Romulo-Puyat made the announcement during the public hearing on the effects of COVID-19 on the Philippine economy, which largely depends on the tourism sector for growth.
She also said that for February alone, the country is expected to lose P16 billion worth of tourism revenues from the same areas of concern.
Romulo-Puyat also reported that Civil Aviation Board already recorded 465 cancelled flights per week due to COVID-19, which has already killed over 1,000 people in China.
“The expected reduction of tourist arrivals from the markets affected will result to forgone revenues that will carry over until April of this year,” Romulo-Puyat said.
“Efforts are being undertaken by the DOT to cushion the impact. We are discussing roll out of more value-added tour packages, discounted accommodation rates and marked down prices for domestic flights,” she added. (GMA News)
