Chinese tourists spending in Russia are down due to the decline in overseas travel caused by coronavirus, as reported by Russian Standard, one of the acquiring banks of the Chinese payment system, Alipay.
In January 2020, tourism spending decreased by 31.2 % compared to the same period in 2019, and in the first seven days of February it fell by 73.4 %. Union Pay also recorded a 52% and 68% decline, respectively, according to the Chinese banks, however, VTB calls the indicators insignificant. Sberbank and Gazprombank have not yet disclosed statistics.
Chinese tourists stopped traveling to Russia only at the end of January, before that, Chinese tourists moved freely around Russian territory. Currently, there are about 1 thousand tourists on individual visas in the capital. Another 45,000 tours from China are expected in February.
The Russian market for premium and luxury goods is also dependent on Chinese consumers. For many years, Russia has remained one of the most sought-after markets for Chinese purchases in the luxury segment, largely due to the weak ruble.
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