Quick takes

Hong Kong’s arrivals down 94% in 2020

Obviously, this is not a surprise, but it is a stark reminder of how hard travel and tourism in Asia has been hit by COVID-19. With borders essentially closed in 2020, arrivals to Hong Kong fell from 55.9 million to 3.57 million – and most of those arrivals occurred in January 2020 before borders were closed.

LVS without Sheldon

A long look at the future of Las Vegas Sands. In short, it is all about Asia. LVS is considering selling its properties on the Vegas Strip, and Macau and Singapore are now the crown jewels as they account for 70% of the company’s annual revenues.

IAAPA moves annual event from Macau to Shanghai

This sums up the outlook for events in Asia in the first half of 2021. Macau, which has recorded one (yes, just one!) COVID-19 case since May 2020, will not be the host of IAAPA’s annual event in 2021. Instead of Macau in June, IAAPA opted for Shanghai in August, which suggests that IAAPA thinks that even their Mainland Chinese delegates would not be able to easily enter Macau by June.

(Legal) casinos in Thailand?

In Japan, the bidding process to license and develop integrated resorts (IRs) has completely gone off the rails. Now, the Thai government is signalling that it is open to the idea of developing IRs in an effort to undermine the endless number of illegal casinos that operate in the Kingdom.

Digital vaccination certificates may lead to travel

International Air Transport Association (IATA) is pushing the European Union to agree to a common digital COVID-19 vaccination certificate that would enable those who are vaccinated to travel freely within Europe. Emirates will the first airline to trial the IATA digital passport.

Quick takes

LVS’ Adelson dead at 87

Sheldon Adelson, who made his first pile of cash in trade shows and then went on to build the world’s largest casino group, has died at age 87. Bloomberg has a good summary and obituary.

Duncan Clark on Jack Ma’s precarious situation

Duncan Clark, who wrote Alibaba: The House that Jack Ma Built, discusses how Jack really put his foot in it back in October and what President Xi might have in mind for Ma and Ant Financial.

Facebook looks to Asia (but not China) for growth

Just 10% of Facebook’s revenues come from Asia. The company may have its sights set on the growth potential in Asia, but it won’t be easy.

How COVID has reshaped live events in Japan

A long, comprehensive article from The Japan Times on events in Japan. Audiences “can clap, but they cannot shout.” That’s a very Japanese restriction.

Interview with Informa Markets India MD on events there

Yogesh Mudras, MD of Informa Markets India, offers his take on the outlook for events in India, the impact of COVID-19 and the restrictions in place allowing events to tentatively proceed.

8,700+ visitors attend first Labelexpo South China

Shenzhen, 21st December: The Tarsus Group closed the inaugural edition of its Labelexpo South China last month, featuring a total of 8,778 visitors.

Labelexpo South China was held from 8th to 10th December 2020 at Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center. Some 130 exhibitors occupied 11,000 m2 at the venue, showcasing the latest label and package printing machinery, smart technology, materials and components.

CEIR: releases report on virtual event trends

Dallas, 12th January: The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) has released the first in a series of new reports titled, Global Virtual Event Trends Series: Report One – Anatomy of Virtual Events and Financial Outcomes. The report offers insights from event organisers managing physical and virtual B2B exhibitions.

The report summarises a survey conducted in October 2020, gathering insights from respondents around the world. A total of 346 executives completed the survey. The report provides insights related to virtual events that have been held since the COVID-19 pandemic began – including participation numbers and financial results.

Comexposium to launch new edition of SIAL in Shenzhen

Shenzhen, 7th January: Comexposium, an international exhibition organiser, has unveiled plans to expand its SIAL portfolio to Shenzhen in southern China. The new show, SIAL China SOUTH will be held in Shenzhen running from 28th to 30th October 2021.

The show will aim to provide a platform for the food industry serving the southern China market. It will showcase premium food and beverage products and offer access to insights on food and beverage market trends. The inaugural edition is expected to attract 800 exhibitors and 25,000 professional visitors.

UAE exempts IDEX and NAVDEX delegates from quarantine

Abu Dhabi, 11th January: The Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC), organiser of the International Defence Exhibition (IDEX 2021) and the Naval Defence Exhibition (NAVDEX 2021), has received approval from the Abu Dhabi Public Health Centre, to allow all international delegates attending the two events to be exempted from the 10-day quarantine procedure. However, other arrivals to UAE are required to quarantine.

The two events will run from 21st to 25th February 2021 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC). International delegate badge holders will not be required to wear tracking wristbands which are required for other visitors arriving from countries not on the ‘green’ list. Delegates will be required to follow social distancing measures and wearing of face masks is mandatory across all of ADNEC’s facilities.

Share price movement in B2B media companies involved in Asia

Figure 1: BSG B2B Media Index vs. All Tracked B2B Stocks (price movement over past 12 months)

Figure 2: BSG B2B Media Index vs. All Tracked B2B Stocks (price movement since January 2021)

Share price movement in B2B media companies involved in Asia

Figure 1: BSG B2B Media Index vs. All Tracked B2B Stocks (price movement over past 12 months)

Quick takes

Tough times for Alibaba

Quite a bit has happened to Alibaba in the last few months. First, Chinese regulators halted the Ant Financial IPO at the last minute. U.S. regulators proposed and then withdrew an investment ban on Chinese companies including Alibaba, Tencent and others. Meanwhile, Jack Ma is under investigation, has been advised not to leave China. He has not been seen in public since October. And finally, the Trump administration launched a ban on transactions on Alipay within the U.S.

Informa looks to 2nd half of 2021

Informa has announced that it is scheduling 90% of its physical events (outside Mainland China) to run beginning from June 2021. On the positive side of things,

Informa’s management noted that rebooking for 2021 events in Mainland China has “been encouraging, underlining the pent-up demand for physical tradeshows as markets re-open.” Informa generates approximately two-thirds of its revenues and profits from events, but during the pandemic, its subscription business helpfully provided £300 million in profits. Finally, the group announced that former Rolls-Royce CEO, John Rishton, has been confirmed as Informa Chair Elect.

Head of Reed Exhibitions Russia to lead U.K. business

Overall RELX, the parent company of Reed Exhibitions, is well-positioned to weather the pandemic with just 16% of its revenues coming from events. Despite that fact, there have significant layoffs throughout Reed Exhibitions in recent months. As a result of those departures, the group announced this week that the CEO of its Russia, Turkey &  Middle East business will also be responsible for managing its U.K. business.

TCEB launches new strategies to promote international exhibitions

Thailand, 23rd December: The Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) unveiled plans to use five distinct strategies to promote international exhibitions in the face of the continuing global pandemic.

In 2021, TCEB will support 58 international exhibitions – of those events 44 are existing shows and 14 are new shows.

To support those exhibitions, TCEB will focus on five core strategies.

Ascential acquires a China digital commerce business

China/London, 16th December: Ascential plc, an information, data and analytics company, has announced plans to acquire a digital business in China. Hangzhou Duozhun Data Technology Co. Ltd. (X Target) will be combined with Ascential’s Yimian business to provide “measurement and trading execution capabilities in the digital commerce marketplace.”

Under terms of the agreement, Ascential will pay an initial cash consideration of US$16 million, in addition to earn out payments payable over three years resulting in an estimated total consideration (including the initial payment) of between US$39 million and US$48 million.

HKTDC unveils event plans for 2021

Hong Kong, 22nd December: The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) has announced a new schedule for some of its trade fairs in the first half of 2021 due to the ongoing impact of the pandemic. 

The HKTDC will launch a new sourcing event, the International Sourcing Show, consolidating seven of its trade fairs. These seven fairs were originally scheduled to be held in March and April. The new event will be held in both online and physical formats, with the online event running from 17th to 31st March and the physical event running from 26th to 29th July at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC).

Other rescheduled HKTDC fairs are: Hong Kong International Jewellery Show, Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show, Food Expo and the three concurrent public fairs, Education & Career Expo, Hong Kong Book Fair and the Hong Kong Sports and Leisure Expo. In the first half of 2021, some of HKTDC’s events will be held online only including: Asian Licensing Conference and Hong Kong International Licensing Show, Asian Financial Forum, Hong Kong International Film & TV Market (FILMART), and MarketingPulse.

Quick takes

Singapore to offer highly restricted form of business travel

Singapore is pressing ahead with a plan to offer an almost literal travel bubble to “high economic value” business travellers. The plan features plenty of testing, tracing devices and rooms divided by glass.

Alibaba endures a week of unfortunate news coverage

Things have not been going Jack Ma’s way since the last-minute delay (cancellation, really) of Ant Group’s IPO. Bloomberg reports that the Ant IPO will not happen at all in 2021. Now there are reports that Alibaba’s facial recognition software has been used to profile Muslim Uyghurs in China. And lastly, the AP reports that Alibaba was fined (a grand total of US$76,500) under China’s anti-monopoly laws.

Informa Markets to launch beauty event in Thailand

Informa Markets will host the first edition of Cosmoprof CBE ASEAN at the IMPACT Convention and Exhibition Center in Bangkok next year. The new event will be organised by Informa Markets, China Beauty Expo (CBE) and BolognaFiere.

Quick takes

Singapore to host 2021 World Economic Forum

Some event markets may actually come out of this pandemic having improved their reputation and attractiveness to organisers. The Lion City is attempting to do just that. Singapore must have pulled out all the stops (and its cheque book) to convince the WEF to make this move.

2021 Paris Air Show cancelled

It is difficult to think of two industries hit harder than aviation and business events. With that in mind, it is not particularly surprising that the French aerospace industry association cancelled the 2021 edition of the event – this is its first cancellation since World War II.

Asia Fruit Logistica returns to Hong Kong

This event has had a rough couple of years. Organisers pressed ahead in September last year during the Hong Kong protests and then they decided to relocate to Singapore for 2020. Of course, the pandemic put a stop to that. Now, Asia Fruit Logistica will return to Hong Kong in 2021.

Alibaba struggles with sales in Europe

This is an interesting Bloomberg article on Alibaba’s weak sales in Europe. They may not need the European market, but it does seem that they want what they cannot have.

Messe Frankfurt’s revenues hit €250 million in FY2020

Frankfurt, 9th December: Messe Frankfurt (MF), a leading German international exhibition organiser, has released its results for the 2020 financial year. The company generated revenues of approximately €250 million (US$302 million). MF organised more than 150 events worldwide this year. The announcement noted that Messe Frankfurt managed to organise just one third the number of events compared to the years prior to COVID-19.

According to the group’s management, despite the very challenging market conditions in 2020 Messe Frankfurt held a total of 153 events – including 52 trade fairs and exhibitions featuring more than 33,100 exhibiting companies and some 1.3 million visitors. Management also noted that Messe Frankfurt’s business in China recovered remarkably well. The company stated, “Messe Frankfurt events (in China), in many cases, were on a par with pre-coronavirus years.”