Is Tourism Australia’s fixation with China harming its performance in other key markets? The latest inbound stats suggest there could be substance to this argument. Sure, the number of Chinese visitors increased 17% to 577k in the year May 31 but other key Asia markets, all in the inbound Top 10, were flat or negative: Japan (-7%), Singapore (0.4%), Malaysia (-2.5%), Korea (-3.5%) and Hong Kong (-1.2%). These markets should be growing: they are strong economically, access is good. So what’s the problem – China perhaps? That’s where all the resources and mental energy are going…
Share and Enjoy:
Martin, you are absolutely right to stress the importance of having a balanced portfolio but we do also need to invest where the best returns exist.
While Asia is leading the charge in terms of growth – and is therefore a key focus for us in terms of the allocation of our resources – the traditional long haul western markets of the UK, Europe, the US and New Zealand will continue to be core to our business.
Competitor analysis shows that we are still out spending destinations such as Canada, New Zealand, the USA, and South Africa – and we will continue to invest heavily in these markets.
Looking at Asian arrivals so far this year, the picture is actually quite mixed, with several key markets demonstrating growth, and a few flat or in decline.
During the five months to May 2012 (latest ABS figures) we have witnessed declines in visitors from Singapore (down 2.8 per cent) and Thailand (down 10.1 per cent), but all our other target Asian markets are up so far this year: Malaysia (0.6 per cent), India (5.2 per cent), Indonesia (1.4 per cent), Korea (1.4 per cent), Hong Kong (2.1 per cent), Taiwan (21.8 per cent) and also Japan (7.1 per cent).
And, the additional funding provided through the new Asia Marketing Fund will be used to target high yielding consumer segments in these growing, key Asian markets, including existing targets and other markets with long term potential.