UFI Global Congress moves to digital-only format

Paris, 13th October: UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, has announced this year’s Global Congress will be a digital-only event, running from 16th to 19th November. The theme of this year’s event is “Resilience”. Originally, the association had planned to organise smaller, regional versions of its annual event in addition to a digital platform. However, on-going travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in many countries made travel too challenging for many delegates.

UFI maintains that speakers at its Global Congress will deliver world-class content and bring the industry together to network, meet and share experiences. Digital programming will be set for regional time slots in Asia/Pacific, Europe/Middle East/Africa, and the Americas, so that participants can connect and follow live from their own time zone, as well as review other sessions on-demand. In addition, participants can also use the platform to network with peers around the world before, during and after the congress.

Malaysia’s major cities lockdown

Malaysia, 13th October: Earlier this week, the Malaysian cities of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Selangor and Sabah were placed under a conditional movement control order (CMCO) until 27th October to prevent further spreading of COVID-19. This is a significant step back for Malaysia which has handled the pandemic quite effectively.

On 6th October, Malaysia recorded 691 new COVID-19 infections, which was said to be a new high for the country. As of 12th October, Malaysia has reported over 16,200 cumulative cases, with slightly more than 5,000 active cases.

SPH records a US$60m loss

Singapore, 13th October: Singapore Press Holdings Limited (SPH), a Singaporean media company, has recently released its financial results for the year ended 31st August 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company posted a net loss of S$83.7 million (US$61.6 million), compared with a net profit of S$213.2 million (US$156.9 million) last year.

Revenues in the year fell by 9.8%, down to S$865.7 million (US$637.1 million). SPH’s media business generated revenues of S$445.1 million (US$327.6 million), down nearly 23% year-on-year. The decrease was mainly due to the decline in revenue from newspaper print ads, which fell by 33%.

Tarsus buys out its Chinese JV partner

London/China, 12th October: Tarsus Group, a global B2B media company, has announced plans to acquire the remaining stake in Hubei Tarsus Hope held by its Chinese joint venture partner.

Tarsus first acquired a stake in Hubei Hope Exhibition in 2008. At the time, it was a 50/50 joint venture. The JV organises B2B exhibitions in second and third tier cities in central and western China – including the Chengdu Dental Show and the Zhejiang Medical and Dental Show.

Quick takes

Alibaba to disrupt yet another industry

Jack Ma may no longer be a director of the Alibaba Group, but he is continuing to push the e-commerce giant into new territory. Alibaba has formed a JV with struggling Swiss group, Dufry, to shake-up duty-free shopping in China’s airports.

90,000 exhibition industry jobs at risk in the U.K.

The industry in the U.K. is lobbying prime minister, Boris Johnson, for support. At least 90,000 exhibition industry jobs will be lost in the coming weeks as the furlough scheme ends. Industry associations have sent an open letter to Johnson.

Comic Con to go ahead in L.A. in December

L.A. Comic Con will be held from 11th to 13th December. Organisers have rented out the entire LA Convention Center in order to maintain social distancing. In 2019, the event (usually held in San Diego) attracted 42,000 attendees. This year, the number will be limited to just 13,500 attendees.

Quick takes

RELX appoints new chair

The parent company of Reed Exhibitions, RELX, has announced that Paul Walker will take over from Sir Anthony Habgood as chair of the group. Walker is expected to officially become chair in the first half of 2021. Walker has held leadership roles at a long list of public companies.

Informa Markets hosts events in Japan

The world’s largest exhibition organiser, Informa Markets, is persevering in this very challenging time for live events. Recently, the group held exhibitions in China, Thailand and Japan.

Macau’s Stats Department tries to see the bright side

It is not often these days that any press release refers to “soaring” figures. Macau’s Statistics Service noted that visitor arrivals “soared by 206.9% month-to-month.” That is comparing August 2020 to July 2020. Unfortunately, the next sentence noted that the August figure represented a 94% decline year-on-year.

Malaysia extends wage subsidy support

Malaysia, 24th September: The Malaysian government has announced plans to spend RM 2.4 billion (US$577 million) as part of its second wage subsidy scheme to assist companies that continue to be affected by the on-going COVID-19 pandemic.

Companies that have recorded a 30% or more decrease in revenues will be eligible to apply for the subsidies. The monthly wage subsidy will be RM 600 per employee for up to 200 employees for three months. New applicants, who have not received assistance earlier for the first wage subsidy programme, will be eligible to receive wage subsidies of up to six months.

Hyve expects revenues to fall by 50%+

London, 23rd September: Earlier this week, London-listed Hyve Group, released its trading update for the year ending 30th September 2020. The company expects revenues for the financial 2019-2020 to be £105 million (US$134 million), compared with revenues of £221 million (US$282 million) in the previous year. That represents a 52% drop in revenues.

Hyve organised 12 face-to-face events in the fourth quarter of its financial year and generated estimated revenues of £9 million (US$11 million) in the quarter. According to the company, it remains in a “resilient financial position.” In June, the company completed a £126 million (US$161 million) rights issue, and Hyve reports that it has also been successful in collecting insurance claim settlements. Finally, the company has also implemented significant cost saving measures. Net debt is expected to be less than £80 million (US$102 million) as of 30th September.

Informa Markets records 45% drop in revenues

London, 21st September: Informa PLC has released its financial results for the six months ended 30th June 2020. Revenues in the first half were £814.4 million (approximately US$1.04 billion) – representing an underlying decrease of 26%. While adjusted operating profit was £118.6 million (US$146 million). That is a 54% drop compared with the same period last year.

Informa Markets, which is the group’s event business, posted revenues of £284.7 million (US$350 million) in the first half of 2020, representing an underlying decline of 45% and adjusted operating profit was down 92%, falling to £12 million (US$15 million).

Comexposium to enter “procédure de sauvegarde”

Paris, 22nd September: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and devastating effect it has had on the global events industry, Comexposium, a global events organiser based in France, has been unable to organise events for more than six months in some of its key markets. As a result, several of Comexposium’s holding companies have opted to enter into a “procédure de sauvegarde” with Commercial Court of Nanterre.

Although it is not a bankruptcy process, procédure de sauvegarde does suspend the payment of debts and allow the company to protect itself from its creditors. The process will also allow for a reorganisation of liabilities and provide Comexposium with a grace period of non-payment.

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)

Quick takes

Alibaba to live stream September Fashion Shows

IMG, the owner of New York Fashion Week, has announced plans to partner with Alibaba Group’s Tmall to live stream all IMG’s September shows and digital content in China. This seems to be the future of live events – at least for the time being.

Germany lists trade shows as essential travel

This does not allow trade show attendees to by-pass local quarantine requirements, but it is an important step towards recognising the vital role that trade shows play in restarting economic activity.

Alibaba may pump US$3b into Grab

Since March 2018, Uber has owned 27.5% of Grab. Alibaba may spend some of its proposed US$3 billion investment in Grab to buy shares from Uber. Alibaba will apparently be the sole investor in this funding round.