Bangkok to host 2023 ICCA Congress

 Bangkok, 18th May: Bangkok has been selected to host the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) Congress 2023. This is a big win for Thailand as the ICCA Congress is a large, flagship annual meeting for global conference organisers.

Now in its 62nd edition, the ICCA Congress is expected to attract more than a thousand private and public organisations from over 100 countries and regions. The event will run from 12th to 15th November 2023. It will be strongly supported by the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB).

CEIR Index shows recovery in U.S.

Dallas, 23rd May: The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) has released its latest index tracking the U.S. B2B exhibition industry in the first quarter of 2022, showing that the industry improved significantly compared with the previous eight quarters.

Cancellation rates for physical events dropped to 9.2% in the first quarter of 2022, compared with the rate of 91.3% in the first quarter of 2021, 66.2% in the second quarter, 20.6% in the third quarter and 12.5% in the fourth quarter. In the second half of 2020, an incredible 98% of exhibitions were cancelled.

Hyve’s revenues US$77m in first half

London, 24th May: Earlier this week, Hyve Group plc (formerly ITE Group) released its financial results for the six months ended 31st March 2022. Revenues in the period were £58.6 million (US$77 million), compared with £5.0 million (US$6.5 million) in the same period in 2021. Management attributed the performance to the return to its pre-pandemic schedule of events - with a few important exceptions including China.

Profits before tax in the six-month period were £9.5 million (US$12 million), compared with profits of £29.4 million (US$38 million) in the same period last year. However, excluding the impact of insurance proceeds received, profits would have increased by £18.5 million (US$24 million) due to the recovery of the company’s events.

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 2022)

Quick takes

Events industry receives multi-million dollar boost in Western Australia

The government of Western Australia has allocated A$20 million (US$14 million) for a new Major Events Fund, of which A$5 million (US$3.5 million) has been allocated for hosting business events. The funding boost comes at a pivotal time for the industry, which is poised for recovery following the reopening of borders and increased appetite for business travel.

Mala Dorasamy appointed CEO of Mitec

Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (Mitec) has appointed Mala Dorasamy as its new CEO. Based in Kuala Lumpur, she has served as Mitec’s director of marketing and sales since 2017 and took on the acting CEO role in 2021.

Thailand sees growing international arrivals

New data from the Tourism Authority of Thailand indicates the country is on target to welcome 20 million arrivals in 2023, following the relaxation of entry rules in April. In an encouraging sign, international visitor arrivals increased by 139,982 from 25th April to 3rd May.

Geoff Dickinson elected UFI President for 2023-24

The UFI Board of Directors has elected Geoff Dickinson as UFI President for the 2023-24 period. As Incoming President, Dickinson joins President Michael Duck and Outgoing President Monica Lee-Müller to form the UFI Presidential Trio for the 2022-23 term.

BOL’s profits up 17% in Q1

Bangkok, 13th May: Business Online (BOL), a leading online information service provider in Thailand, announced that it recorded revenues of US$5.01 million for the quarter ended 31st March 2022, representing a 5.3% year-on-year increase. BOL’s net profit for the year grew 17%, reaching US$1.8 million. Diluted earnings per share in the first quarter of 2022 were THB 0.075 (US$0.0022).

Most of BOL’s revenues were generated from its service business, amounting to US$4.9 million. This business increased by 7.2% year-on-year. The remaining revenues were generated from “other income” (US$87,000).

Sino Splendid’s revenues up 29% in Q1

Hong Kong, 13th May: Last week, Hong Kong-listed Sino Splendid (formerly China.com) reported its results for the quarter ended 31st March 2022. Sino Splendid is the owner and operator of the travel media group, TTG.

The company’s total revenues increased by 29% year-on-year, amounting to US$2.3 million during the quarter. However, the company posted a net loss of US$2.7 million, compared with a loss of US$884,000 in the first quarter of 2021.

Messe Frankfurt and VNU Group to launch a new meat and food processing show

Bangkok, 15th May: Two international exhibition organisers, Messe Frankfurt and VNU Group, announced a partnership to jointly organise a new trade show serving the Asian meat and food processing and catering market, Meat Pro Asia.

The new show will be organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd and VNU Group, running from 8th to 10th March 2023, at IMPACT in Bangkok, Thailand. Merat Pro Asia will focus on solutions that deliver meat from farm to table, including slaughtering, the full processing chain, packaging, labelling, cold chain logistics, quality control, hygiene, IoT and automation, waste water treatment, etc.

Operator of MCEC to take on additional new venue

Australia, 11th May: Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Trust, the operator of Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), will operate a new venue, Geelong Convention and Exhibition Centre (GCEC), which will open in 2026.

GCEC will be located on the Geelong Waterfront precinct as part of the Geelong City Deal, a partnership between the Australian and Victorian Governments together with the City of Greater Geelong. The new venue will cost A$294 million (US$205 million), including the construction of a purpose-built convention and exhibition centre, incorporating a 1,000-seat plenary venue and at least 3,700 m2 of flexible event space, allowing large and small events to run concurrently.

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 2022)

New subway station serving HKCEC

Hong Kong, 5th May: There is a bit of much needed good news from Hong Kong. Finally, a new train station serving the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC), named Exhibition Centre MTR station, will open on 15th May.

After the official opening of the Exhibition Centre MTR station this weekend, HKCEC will be more easily accessible for delegates staying at hotels in Kowloon and the New Territories. The new station is located at the East Rail Line Cross-Harbour Extension, providing a third rail link across Victoria Harbour and connecting HKCEC to Hung Hom on the Kowloon side of the harbour.

Seoul reveals MICE support plans

Seoul, 9th May: The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Tourism Organization have recently revealed its plans to support the recovery of the business events industry in Korea in 2022.

Under the new plan, international conferences with more than 20% of the delegates attending on-site will receive up to a maximum of US$157,000. The support for the international conference delegate and speaker invitations has also been increased to a maximum of US$47,000. In terms of exhibition support, a total of more than 30 selected exhibitions will receive up to a maximum of US$63,000. The support will be used to help support online marketing, live streaming and other tech platforms during the exhibitions.

Hannover Milano Fairs to co-organise tourist exhibition in Chengdu

Chengdu, 11th May: Hannover Milano Fairs Shanghai (HMFS), the Chinese subsidiary of international exhibition organiser, Deutsche Messe, and CMEC International Exhibition (CMEC EXPO) signed a strategic cooperation to co-organise a tourist exhibition serving Southwest China, the Chengdu International Culture and Tourism Exhibition. The two companies aim to develop the event into a “high-end culture and tourism fair in Southwest China and facilitate the growth of the regional cultural tourism markets.”

The exhibition is scheduled to run from 25th to 27th November 2022 at the Chengdu Century City New International Convention and Exhibition Center. The inaugural theme will be “Exploring the Panda Homeland, Enjoying Sichuan Life.”

Foundry launches Network World Asia

Singapore, 5th May: Foundry (formerly IDG Communications) announced plans to expand its Network World into Asia by launching Network World Asia.

Network World is a content, lead generation and event resource for data centre managers building modern enterprise data centres. Network World has provided domain expertise on the modern enterprise data centres to help technology decision-makers make the best purchasing decisions for their organisations.

Quick takes

Japan moves toward tentatively opening

The Prime Minister of Japan indicated that the country is planning to re-open its borders to international tourists beginning in June. Prime Minister Funmio Kishida stated that the country plans a “period of transition back to normal life.” The ban on foreign tourists would be eased in stages with arrivals having to show proof of three vaccination shots.

ICC Sydney aims to hit pre-COVID numbers

Management at ICC Sydney expects to host about 600 events during in 2022 – including business events aimed at global audiences. The open question is when China participants will return and if those numbers will recover to pre-COVID levels.

Malaysia removes most restrictions

As of 1st May, COVID-19 insurance is no longer a requirement to enter Malaysia. In addition, fully vaccinated travellers no longer have to undergo PCR tests before and after arrival. Business events are not required to enforce physical distancing and all economic sectors in the country are allowed to re-open. Good news, indeed.

A different Ma

Ma is a common surname in China, but when a person in Hangzhou named Ma was detained by Chinese security authorities, Alibaba’s stock lost billions in market value. It turns out that Jack was not detained. It was someone else. Oops. That was a costly misunderstanding.

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 2022)

ICCA: Event venue revenue to surpass 2019 levels by 2023

Worldwide, 28th April: The International Association of Conference Centres (ICCA) recently released its annual Meeting Room of the Future Barometer 2022, showing two-thirds of venues expect to recover to 2019 meeting revenue levels in 2022 or 2023.

According to the study, average meeting and business events revenue in 2021 was 45% lower than 2019 levels, and 2022 will bounce back to just 8% below 2019 levels. The study also showed the return to meetings weighted towards in-person interactions. The value of human interaction is ranked the highest of seven factors when considering attendance of in-person meetings. In 2021, 30% of respondents reported that more than 90% of their live meetings and events also offered virtual access; that figure dropped to 19% in 2022.

Meorient reduces loss in Q1

Hangzhou, 29th April: Last week, Meorient, one of the few publicly-traded exhibition organisers in China, released its results for the quarter ended 31st March 2022. Revenues increased by 12% year-on-year, reaching US$4.6 million.

The company posted a net loss of US$2.7 million in the three-month period, compared with a net loss of US$2.8 million in the first quarter in 2021. Management did not comment on the increase in revenues.

Netsun’s revenues up, profit down in FY2021

Hangzhou, 29th April: Shenzhen-listed Zhejiang Netsun announced its results for the year ended 31st December 2021, reporting revenues of US$73 million. This represents a year-on-year increase of 24%. However, net profit in 2021 dropped 39%, down to US$3.6 million. Diluted earnings per share in 2021 were RMB 0.09 (US$0.014).

The company attributed the growth in revenue to increasing income from the B2B trading platform. The decrease in profit was due to a decline in income from the network service industry.

Made-in-China.com profits up 108% in Q1

Nanjing, 30th April: Also last week, Focus Technology, operator of the B2B sourcing platform Made-in-China.com, reported revenues of US$54 million in the quarter ended 31st March 2022, representing year-on-year growth of 6.3% compared with the first quarter of 2021.

The company’s net profit jumped 108% year-on-year, reaching US$6.4 million in the quarter. Diluted earnings per share in the three-month period were RMB 0.13