April arrivals jump 10pc, boosted by HK Sevens

Hong Kong saw the number of visitor arrivals jump 10 percent year on year in April, as the Rugby Sevens helped lure more international travellers to the city. Preliminary figures released by the Hong Kong Tourism Board on Friday showed that the number of arrivals in the SAR reached almost 4.22 million during the month, with visitors from long-haul markets jumping 20 percent to reach around 411,533. Arrivals from the mainland, meanwhile, also rose notably, increasing by 10 percent year on year to about 3.1 million, about 73 percent of the total number. However, arrivals from short-haul markets or new markets rose marginally by only around one to two percent during the month. The latest figures brought the total number of visitor arrivals for the first four months of the year to 18.52 million, up 15 percent compared with the same period last year. Looking ahead, the board noted there's been continuous growth in visitor numbers, but said it would closely monitor developments related to the Iran war, and assess its impact on air traffic capacity and the tourism market. "It will flexibly allocate resources and attract high-value visitors, with a view to maximising the economic contributions of the tourism industry," the board said in a statement. Between January and April, arrivals from the mainland reached 14.18 million, or about 76 percent of the total, marking an increase of 18 percent from the same period a year ago. Meanwhile, inbound trips from elsewhere rose by eight percent year on year to 4.34 million during the period, with those from long-haul and new markets jumping 19 and 16 percent respectively. The three-day Hong Kong Sevens tournament that was held at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium in mid April helped draw tens of thousands of visitors, with overseas travellers accounting for about 30 percent of the total attendees. Edited by Tony Sabine