BSG forecast unprecedented 75% drop in net space sold in 2020

Hong Kong, 28th August: UFI and BSG have released the 16th edition of our annual report on the Trade Fair Industry in Asia. The report, researched and compiled by BSG, the covers actual performance of the industry in 2019, as well as forecasts for the years 2020 and 2021.

BSG estimates that Asia will record an unprecedented 75% drop in net space sold in 2020 compared to 2019 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Net space sold in Asia is expected to fall from the 24.5 million m2 recorded in 2019 down to just 6.8 million m2 in 2020.

This diminished result depends heavily on the trade fair market in China – which now accounts for nearly 60% of net space sold in Asia. If China avoids a large second or third wave of infections, 6.8 million m2 sold across Asia in 2020 is achievable. If China experiences another outbreak and returns to lockdown, the actual results in 2020 will be significantly lower.

In 2021, BSG’s forecast for the Asia Pacific region is net space sold in the range of 50% to 60% of 2019 levels – with China expected to outperform all other markets. In 2021, China is expected achieve 70% to 75% of net space sold in 2019 – barring a significant new outbreak of COVID-19.

The full report is available for purchase on the BSG website. UFI members are entitled to receive an executive summary of the research and to purchase the full report at a substantial discount. Details can be found on the UFI website.

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 2020)

Pacific World folds after 40 years in the industry

Hong Kong, 18th August: Pacific World, a global destination management company, will cease operations in November after 40 years in the business. A note was recently sent to clients and partners outlining plans to close down the Hong Kong office in September and wind-up the business before the end of the year.

The company had been operating in Hong Kong since 1981 and has operations in 30 countries. The decision to cease operations was entirely due to the COVID-19 disruptions to the “global tourism industry in the past few months.” According to various media reports, its offices in Thailand have already closed and more of its Asian operations will follow in the coming weeks.

Quick takes

Shanghai Lansheng’s revenues down 16%

The Shanghai-based event organiser reports that revenues fell 16% down to US$186 million in the second quarter.

U.S.-China trade war now targets tech

CNN takes a look at the likelihood that WeChat and Alibaba could be next after the Trump administration finishes with TikTok.

This is not a U.S.-China cold war

In an interesting, thought-provoking article, Foreign Policy magazine argues that the comparisons with the U.S.-Soviet Union cold war are misguided.

U.K. debuts a new socially distanced live music venue

This is better than nothing, but not much better. Let’s hope this pandemic passes soon because this is far from ideal.

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 2020)

CCID posts loss in first half

Beijing, 7th August: Last week, CCID Consulting, a research and information service provider in China, announced its financial results for the first half of 2020. Revenue dropped 54% year-on-year, down to US$5.7 million. The company posted a loss of US$1.5 million in the six-month period compared with a profit of US$1.1 million in the first half of 2019.

CCID’s largest business segment, management & strategy consultancy services, generated about 48% of total revenues amounting to US$2.7 million. This business segment decreased by 63% year-on-year. The second largest business segment was its information engineering supervision services, which generated revenues of US$1.9 million, accounting for 34% of total revenues and representing a drop of 51%. The remaining revenues were from its market consultancy services (US$1.01 million), which increased by 2.6%.

Sino Splendid’s revenues drop 59% in first half

Hong Kong, 10th August: Earlier this week, Hong Kong-listed Sino Splendid (formerly China.com) released its results for the six-month period ended 30th June 2020. Revenues in the first half were US$2.5 million, a year-on-year decrease of 59%. The company recorded a loss of US$1.3 million, compared with a loss of US$638,000 in the same period in 2019.

More than 58% of its total revenues were generated from its travel media business segment, amounting to US$1.5 million. This represents a decrease of 68% compared with last year’s figure. Its financial magazine business generated revenues of US$932,000, accounting for approximately 37% of total revenues. The financial magazine business fell 25% in the period. Remaining revenues were generated from its money lending business (US$99,000) and its new virtual reality business (US$23,000).

Global Sources launches online shows

Hong Kong, 5th August: Hong Kong-based Global Sources launched its Global Sources Online Show (GSOS) on 29th July aiming to connect its suppliers with global trade buyers. With a question mark over the outlook for physical events in Hong Kong for the rest of 2020, these online events are Global Sources’ best option to keep their suppliers and buyers engaged and to generate some revenues.

The first week of the online show, which concluded on 4th August, featured products from the medical & healthcare and study & work from home sectors. The second week, running from 3rd to 9th August, focused on products in the home & hardware sectors.

SaigonTex 2020 “postponed” to 2021

Ho Chi Minh City, 7th August: In a bit of discouraging news, Hong Kong-based organiser, CP Exhibition has decided to effectively cancel the 2020 edition of SaigonTex, one of its key shows in Vietnam. This comes despite the fact that Vietnam has managed the COVID-19 outbreak remarkably well.

A leading event in the textile and garment industry in Vietnam, the 2020 edition of SaigonTex – Vietnam Saigon Textile & Garment Industry Expo / SaigonFabric – Vietnam Saigon Fabric & Garment Accessories Expo will be “postponed” (i.e. cancelled) and “combined” with the 2021 edition, running from 7th to 10th April 2021 at the Saigon Exhibition & Convention Center (SECC) in Ho Chi Minh City.

Quick takes

Pico getting some business to build temporary hospitals

Two brief articles (with a few good photos) showing how Pico has transformed halls at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong and SINGEX in Singapore into temporary hospitals for COVID-19 patients. AWE has 400 beds available now.

Confusion and political tension over state borders in Australia

“There now appears a genuine disconnect around how various governments are approaching what one hopes is a future pathway to reopening our internal borders.” That is true worldwide as governments take very different approaches to the pandemic.

Bids for Japan’s IR projects seem to be losing interest

Las Vegas Sands withdrew from Japan completely in May. Wynn Resorts closed its Yokohama office.  Caesars pulled out last year. MGM is “expressing hesitancy,” but Hong Kong-based Galaxy Entertainment Group and Macau-based Melco are still interested. If any of these IRs are actually built, it will eventually add significant exhibition and conference capacity to the Japanese market.

Diversified cancels November event in Singapore

This is not a good sign for the outlook of events in Singapore through to the end of 2020, but it is worth noting that Diversified was the first and only organiser to cancel a B2B exhibition in Hong Kong due to the protests in 2019.

Quick takes

Global Sources kicks-off July online events

Like all organisers around the world, Global Sources’ physical events have been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, but few organisers are as well-positioned and as experienced online as is Global Sources.

Messe Frankfurt gets restarted in Shenzhen

Over 1,000 exhibitors were onsite at Messe Frankfurt’s Intertextile Shenzhen which kicked off at Shenzhen World on 15th July.

Dyandra Promosindo plans large exhibition in October

Perhaps somewhat optimistically, Dyandra Promosindo, a large exhibition organiser in Indonesia has announced that it will go ahead with three large co-located events in October in Jakarta.

Chengdu Motor Show 2020 features 1,500 cars

Chengdu, 2nd August: Hannover Milano Fairs Shanghai, a subsidiary of Deutsche Messe in China, recently opened its first major event since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak – the 23rd edition of Chengdu Motor Show, which was held at the Western China International Expo City. Running from 25th July to 2nd August, the exhibition featured over 120 car brands and showcased more than 1,500 cars. The event occupied a total exhibition area of 160,000 m2.

According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, car sales increased 10.4% in the second quarter of 2020 compared with the same quarter last year, reflecting the increasing demand for new car purchases and vehicle replacement after the pandemic was brought under control in China.

Meorient’s revenues plummet 89% in first half

Shanghai, 30th July: Last week, Shenzhen-listed, exhibition organiser, Meorient released its results for the six months ended 30th June 2020. The group’s revenues in the first half of 2020 were just US$2.6 million – representing a massive 89% decline compared with the same period last year. The Hangzhou-based company posted a loss of US$7.6 million in the six-month period, compared with a net profit of US$2.3 million in the first six month of 2019.

As a result of the global pandemic, Meorient postponed its exhibitions in Turkey, Poland, Mexico, and Nigeria in April, May and June resulting in the steep decline in its revenues in the first half. In the same period, the company also reported a substantial increase in its expenses as the group aims to develop “online exhibitions.”