Latest news with #visa-free
Skift
20-05-2025
- Business
- Skift
Trip.com Group Rides AI, Inbound Boom, and Older Travelers to Strong Quarter
inbound bookings soared 100% as China's visa-free policies lured more tourists. With AI and senior travelers fueling growth, the company's global comeback looks sharp and well-targeted. Inbound tourism to China has become Group's fastest-growing segment, thanks to favorable policy changes and increased international interest. Visa-free access for travelers from over 40 countries, along with China's new 240-hour visa-free transit policy, is making it easier for tourists to visit the country. 'In the first quarter, our inbound travel bookings surged by approximately 100% year-over-year with South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia emerging as some of the fastest-growing source markets,' said Group Co-Founder and Executive Chairman James Liang at an earnings call on Tuesday. Inbound hotel bookings from key visa-free countries surged more than 240%, driven in part by new initiatives such as free city tours for transit travelers and upgrades to multilingual offline service centers. The inbound segment also outperformed others on conversion rates and cross-selling metrics, according to Jane Sun, CEO and director of Group. AI as a Core Strategic Asset Artificial intelligence is also playing a key role in Group's growth strategy. From planni
Bloomberg
13-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Xi Courts Latin America as Trump's Tariffs Pressure Region
Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to deepen economic cooperation with Latin American and Caribbean nations and offered visa-free entry to some countries, as he seeks to position China as a better partner than the US. China will provide a 66 billion yuan ($9.2 billion) credit line to support development in the region, known in short as LAC, Xi told the fourth ministerial meeting of the China-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States Forum in Beijing on Tuesday. Visa-free arrangement will also be extended to five countries from the group, Xi said, without naming them.
