Nearly 300 delegates attend UFI Asia-Pacific Conference in Macau

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Paris/Macau, 12th February: Last week, UFI, The Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, concluded its annual UFI Asia-Pacific Conference in Macau, which was attended by nearly 300 delegates from 20 countries and regions. Hosted by the Macau Fair & Trade Association, the event was held from 7th to 8th March at The Parisian Macao, and was co-located with the inaugural Asian edition of the Event Directors Summit.

Over the two days of the conference, speakers covered key issues such as the rise of AI and its expected impact on exhibitions, the importance of implementing sustainable best practices, the evolution of event formats and exciting opportunities emerging in China’s Greater Bay Area.

Informa Markets’ revenues up 66% in FY2023

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London, 8th March: Informa PLC released its full year results for the year ended 31st December 2023, reporting revenues of £3.2 billion (US$4.1 billion), which represents underlying growth of 30%. Adjusted operating profits were £854 million (US$1.1 billion), representing underlying growth of 59%.

Informa’s events business, Informa Markets, reported revenues of £1.6 billion (US$2.0 billion), with underlying growth of 66%. Adjusted operating profits were £461 million (US$586 million). That figure is up 166% compared with the previous year.

GL events revenues up 9%

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Lyan, 6th March: GL events has also released its financial results for the year ended 31st December 2023. It reported revenue growth of 9%, reaching €1.43 billion (US$1.6 billion).

In terms of business sectors, more than 57% of revenues were generated from GL events Live, with revenues of €825 million (US$911 million), down 3% year-on-year. The second largest sector was GL events Venues, generating revenues of €393 million (US$434 million), representing year-on-year growth of 21%. Remaining revenue of €210 million (US$231 million) was generated by GL events Exhibitions, which jumped 51% over the previous year.

Business travel with technologies in 2024

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Worldwide, 6th March: Post pandemic business travel has fully recovered, returning to 2019 levels. However, the industry has much changed over the past five years, with new technologies available to deliver an enhanced experience when travelling for work.

The Globetrender report identifies seven trends that will shape and define business travel in the coming 12 months:

1)    AI PAs; 2)    Executive field trips; 3)    Objective stacking; 4)    Blended itineraries; 5)    Net zero heroes; 6)    Digitised expenses; 7)    Power networking.

Quick takes

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VALVE WORLD EXPO India premieres at the Bombay Exhibition Centre

The inaugural edition of VALVE WORLD EXPO India will be held from 19th to 20th September 2024 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, catering to the oil, gas, energy, petrochemical, water and wastewater sectors. The event is being organised and staged by Messe Dusseldorf India and its partner Global Flow Control.

MyCEB and BE Sarawak promote business events in Malaysia

Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) and Business Events Sarawak (BE Sarawak) are joining forces to promote Malaysia as a prime destination for business events. At a recent event in held in Kuching, Sarawak, around 100 stakeholders including industry representatives and relevant government bodies, focused on the benefits of MyCEB’s innovative MyTripleE incentive campaign.

CEIR reports continued rebound in US B2B exhibition industry

The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) reported that the CEIR Total Index – a measure of overall exhibition performance – continues to recover, surging 15% from a year ago. CEIR teamed up with Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics Company, as its consulting partner to produce the research.

TCEB wins bids for international conventions

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Thailand, 28th February: The Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), in collaboration with Thai professional associations and organisations, have secured bids to host 10 large-scale international conventions, during the first five months of the fiscal year 2024.

Of the 10 conventions, six are medical conventions and the others are engineering, sustainable development, and women’s rights. It is expected these conventions will attract more than 20,000 delegates, generating 17.3 billion baht (US$482 million) of economic impact.

Coex open new area, The Platz

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Korea, 23rd February: Coex opened its newest sustainable exhibition space, The Platz. The new exhibition space features an open exhibition area of 2,224 m2, a dedicated lobby and reception area of 646 m2, and private meetings and conference rooms.

The Platz is located on the second floor of Coex, which is east access to event halls on the first floor and conference rooms on the third floor. Therefore, it is an ideal space for smaller exhibitions, concurrent events, art shows, pop-up events, and VIP events.

HKTDC’s twin jewellery shows attract 81,000 buyers

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Hong Kong, 29th February: The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) has recently concluded its jewellery shows, attracting some 81,000 buyers from 137 countries and regions, making it successful return of the “two shows, two venues” format for the first time since the pandemic.

The 40th HKTDC Hong Kong International Jewellery Show and the 10th HKTDC Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show featured more than 4,000 exhibitors from 44 countries and regions. The Jewellery Show was held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC), running from 29th February to 4th March; while the Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show took place at the AsiaWorld-Expo (AWE), from 27th February to 2nd March.

Hong Kong and Singapore get tourism funds

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Hong Kong & Singapore, 1st March: The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) and Singapore’s Tourism Development Fund will receive fund for boosting its tourism industry.

In the latest budget, the Hong Kong government announced to allocated HK$1.1 billion (US$128 million) in funding to strengthen the destination brand and expedite tourism development. The fund allows Hong Kong’s tourism industry to create more products and events to attract tourists, who would spend more time in the destination.

Separately, Singapore’s Tourism Development Fund will get a S$300 million (US$223 million) boost, going into initiatives aimed at reinforcing the global business-hub status. Rejuvenation of existing tourism offerings, training support for tourism workers, and intellectual development of local tourism companies will be launched.

Quick takes

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Informa Markets launches Asia Photonics Expo in Singapore

International exhibition organiser, Informa Markets, launched its inaugural Asia Photonics Expo (APE) at Sands Expo and Convention Centre in Singapore. Some 350 international exhibitors showcased at the new show, providing a platform for the photonics ecosystem.

PATA projects full tourism recovery in 2024

PATA released its latest Asia Pacific Visitor Forecasts report, forecasting a 110% recovery of international visitor arrivals (IVAs) by the end of 2024, under a mild scenario. However, under a severe scenario, recovery is forecasted to be 87% of the 2019 level by the end of 2026.

Shanghai government introduces new B2B travel platform

AVIAREPS, an international representation, marketing and communications company for the travel industry, and the Shanghai Municipal Government, will jointly launch Shanghai’s official online B2B travel platform, SmoothTravel. Through the new platform, global travel industry is able to connect with inbound and outbound Chinese travel agencies, tour wholesalers, online travel agencies (OTAs), and MICE agents in the East China market.

HKTDC praises government’s 2024-25 budget

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Hong Kong, 28th February: The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) released its 2024-25 budget last week, introducing measures to boost Hong Kong’s economic growth and promote the development of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups.

The Hong Kong government will offer wide-ranging support to help SMEs manage their cash flow and accelerate their transformation, attract high-value added industries, capital and international talent to Hong Kong, and to promote green and digital transformation.

In the 2024-25 financial year, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) will provide support to SMEs through four initiatives.

Macau hosts over 1,100 MICE events in 2023

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Macau: 27th February: Earlier this week, Macau’s Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) released its MICE statistics for the year 2023, reporting a total of 1,139 MICE events were held in Macau in the year, jumping 139% compared with the figure of COVID-hit year of 2022. The total number of participants and attendees grew 13%, reaching 1,602,400. Compared to 2019, the number of MICE events in Macau recovered to 74%, while the number of participants and attendees recovered to almost 80%.

Of the 1,139 events held in 2023, 1,058 were meetings and conferences, which grew by 163% year-on-year. The total number of participants at meetings and conferences jumped 291% to 170,000.

A total of 64 exhibitions were held in Macau in 2023. That is the same number as in 2022. The number of attendees increased modestly by 3.3%, reaching 1,421,600 attendees. The total gross area occupied by these exhibitions rose 15% year-on-year, covering a total area of 433,300 m2.

Baidu’s net income jumps 169% in 2023

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Beijing, 28th February: Baidu, the leading search engine in China, recently announced its financial results for the year ended 31st December 2023. The company reported revenues of US$19 billion, up 9% year-on-year. Net income for the year grew 169%, reaching US$2.9 billion. Diluted earnings per share were RMB 55.08 (US$7.76).

Revenues from Baidu’s core business reached US$15 billion in the year, up 8% year-on-year. The majority of its revenues (US$11 billion) were generated from Baidu’s online marketing business, also up 8% year-on-year. The company’s non-online revenue amounted to US$4.0 billion and that segment increased by 9%.

Made-in-China.com’s net income up 26% in 2023

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Nanjing, 23rd February: Last month, Shenzhen-listed Focus Technology, owner and operator of Made-in-China.com, reported its financial results for the year ended 31st December 2023. Revenues in the year were US$214 million. That represents a modest increase of 3.8% year-on-year.

The company’s net income in 2023 jumped 26% year-on-year, reaching US$53 million. Diluted earnings per share were RMB 1.21 (US$0.17). The company’s management attributed the growth to the steady growth in revenues of Made-in-China.com and its management’s tight focus on cost reduction and other operational efficiencies.

Quick takes

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There are plenty of Quick Takes worth looking at this week:

Taylor Swift – event planning (and revenues) on a massive scale

The billionaire singer-songwriter is transforming events and local economies. She sold 96,000 tickets at each of the three nights she performed in Melbourne. This weekend, Singapore is also feeling the Swiftie buzz.

SE Asian buyers came out in force to AIME

Buyers from Southeast Asia accounted for the majority of the fully hosted Asia Pacific Incentives and Meetings Event (AIME) buyers from Asia. Held in Melbourne, three-day event hosted more than 600 buyers and an additional 3,500 visitors. It also featured 570 exhibitors.

Chinese visitors not returning to Japan

Japan attracted far fewer Chinese tourists than expected over Lunar New Year. “The number of Japan visas issued to mainland China-based travellers for the holiday was only 60% of the number issued over the same period in 2019.” That is a worrying trend for many Japanese exhibitions that rely on Chinese exhibitors and visitors.

Chinese corporate travel dynamics are changing

These are some of the trends in China’s massive corporate travel market. This is worth reviewing given the potential impact on business events:

·       Sustainable travel gains traction

·       Balancing work and leisure with bleisure

·       Efficiency through data-driven management

·       Prioritising employee safety with robust risk management

·       The rise of virtual meetings in business communication

·       Adapting corporate travel to economic challenges.

Malaysian business events boom on weak currency

This will make life even more challenging for Singapore where the cost of doing business has leapt since COVID. “Last week, the ringgit plummeted to an all-time low against both the US dollar and Singapore dollar, reaching 4.8 against the US dollar and 3.6 against the Singapore dollar on 20th February.”

UFI releases latest Industry Partners Benchmark Survey

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Paris, 15th February: UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, has released its latest edition of the Industry Partners Benchmark Survey, finding innovation from industry partners to meet the evolving expectations of organisers and venues.

In its third edition, the survey showed the demand for services remain high and have increased from the previous years. Booth construction is the most relied upon service, while communication and marketing are the most important elements for event success. However, digital services decrease due to focus is back on live events. Satisfaction with regards to innovation from service providers also posts a decrease from the last survey.