Organizers scrambled on Sunday to shore up the Singapore Airshow, which is going...
SINGAPORE - Organizers scrambled on Sunday to shore up the Singapore Airshow, which is going ahead under a cloud of health and economic concerns after dozens of exhibitors pulled out of Asia’s largest aerospace gathering due to coronavirus fears.
After years in which the airline industry has become used to weathering external shocks from epidemics to security threats, one of the industry’s leading showcases has itself been thrust into the spotlight as the number of deaths in mainland China, where the virus first erupted, rose above 800. Organizers advised trade visitors to avoid shaking hands and to choose alternative forms of greeting such as bowing or waving hands. The number of public tickets available will be halved.
In 2018, there were 54,000 trade attendees and 1,062 firms as the event contributed S$343 million to the local economy through hotels and other spending, according to organizers. The show also attracts high-level foreign delegations. “Already, there were signs of weakness in the cycle and then coronavirus comes along,” said Rob Morris, head consultant at UK-based Ascend by Cirium.
Air freight, which feeds a significant proportion of Asian airline revenues, has had its weakest performance since the financial crisis in 2009 amid U.S.-China trade tensions.
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