ASEAN-China Year of Tourism Cooperation Launched

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China have much to gain from strengthened cooperation in the tourism industry, a high-ranking Chinese official said last Thursday during the opening ceremony of the ASEAN-China Year of Tourism Cooperation held in Pasay City, Philippines.

“Tourism cooperation not only enhances our mutual understanding and friendship but also boosts our practical cooperation in many industries,” Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said in a message read by Vice Premier Wang Yang.

Mr Li noted “China is ASEAN’s largest resource for tourists” and the Asian powerhouse is ready to “take the tourism year to inject a small impetus to the upgrading of China-ASEAN relations to a new era.”

Mr Wang, in his own speech, said a third of all foreign tourists coming to China come from ASEAN member economies while Chinese outbound tourism has increased at an annual rate of 11.7% in the past five years and has now reached 120 million last year.

Full story at BusinessWorld Online.