Thailand’s tourism sector is expected to get a windfall from the growing tension between the US and China as tourists from the mainland shorten their long-haul journeys to visit closer destinations instead.
Thailand will monitor whether the Chinese government will issue a travel ban to the US for its residents, similar to those issued prohibiting visits to South Korea and Japan during growing conflict with those two countries. Yuthasak Supasorn, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), said assessments conducted by five TAT offices in China found that yuan appreciation and trade conflicts with the US were the key factors which could deter Chinese from travelling abroad.
