Shanghai pulling in the crowds

Shanghai is fast rebounding as a major tourism destination. 

The Chinese city received 9.3602 million inbound visitors over 2025, cementing its position as a leading gateway for international travellers visiting China.

Data released this week by the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism showed inbound arrivals climbed 39.58% year-over-year with momentum accelerating toward year end.

December alone saw 1.0777 million inbound visits, up 45.56% from the same period a year earlier.

Overnight stays accounted for the largest share of inbound travel. 

Arrivals from South Korea more than doubled to 909,100, a rise of 103.62% from a year earlier, while visitor numbers from Russia increased significantly, with December arrivals jumping 93.58%. 

Thailand, Indonesia and Italy all recorded annual increases of over 50%.

Traditional source markets such as Singapore, Malaysia and Australia maintained steady momentum, each posting growth of more than 30%. 

Thanks to visa-free policies and Shanghai's many attractions, boutique hotels reported robust performance. 

International travellers accounted for 66% of guests at the Yangtze Boutique Shanghai, with Europeans making up the largest group. 

Five-star hotels, representing the high-end segment, delivered particularly strong results. Occupancy reached 70.71% in December, up 4.45 percentage points from a year earlier. 

Image: Dubai tourists in Shanghai. Image: Yang Yuhong/Xinmin Evening News

Singapore Airlines records record profits

International air travel has bounced back in a major way post pandemic, with Singapore Airlines parent SIA Group reporting record profits this week.

Record load factors supported highest-ever half-year operating and net profits, the airline said in a statement.

But it warned that growing competition, macroeconomic uncertainties, and inflationary cost pressures pose challenges to the airline industry going forward.

SIA Group said: "robust demand for air travel continued into the northern summer travel season, led by the rebound in passenger traffic to north Asia with the full reopening of China, Hong Kong, Japan, and Taiwan".

This resulted in record half-year operating and net profits for the SIA Group.

SIA and Scoot carried 17.4 million passengers in the first six months of 2023-24, an increase of 52.3% year-on-year.

Passenger traffic grew 38% from a year before.

Individually, SIA and Scoot achieved record passenger loads of 88.0% and 91.3% respectively.

Overall, the group recorded an operating airline profit of $S1.554 billion ($AU1.78 billion), $S320 million higher than a year earlier.

The group posted a net profit of $S1,441 million.

SIA also added three aircraft to its operating fleet in the second quarter: one Airbus A350-900 and two Boeing 787-10s.

The combined fleet is now 202 aircraft with another 96 aircraft on order.

The group’s passenger network now covers 119 destinations in 36 countries and territories.

"While the demand for air travel is expected to remain healthy leading up to the end of the financial year, significant capacity restoration across the industry, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, could put pressure on passenger yields," the airline said.

"The group will closely monitor market conditions and adjust its operations as necessary. The demand for air freight is expected to remain soft in the traditional peak third quarter of FY2023-24, dampened by excess inventories, geopolitical tensions, and macroeconomic headwinds".