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MANILA - China's territorial dispute with the Philippines has dampened passenger traffic to a near two-year low between the two countries since May, according to the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation.
In a report, CAPA said the Philippines is hurting from a Beijing-imposed travel ban that has resulted in scores of tour agencies, which carry Chinese tourists, canceling trips.
"Scheduled seats between China and the Philippines are at a near two-year low. Restrictions in the Philippines mean service resumption could hinge on slow bureaucracy changes while Japan will need a shift of public attitude, which may take much longer to be restored," CAPA said.
A separate dispute between China and Japan concerns a series of islands in the East China Sea called Diaoyu in Chinese and Senkaku in Japanese.
"The Philippines has seen declining traffic to China in recent months and capacity levels in September have been at lows not seen in over a year," CAPA said.
There have been 11,000 one-way scheduled seats per week in the Philippines-China market, down 15 percent from May this year when China first issued its warning against traveling to the Philippines following a naval standoff at the Scarborough Shoal.
Philippine carriers accounted for nearly three-quarters of capacity in that market.
Philippine Airlines is the largest carrier, accounting for 37 percent of capacity between the Philippines and China. PAL serves Beijing, Shanghai and Xiamen from Manila.
Zest Airways serves Shanghai and Quanzhou with a 9 percent capacity, while Cebu Pacific serves Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai and Xiamen for a 27 percent capacity.
CAPA said PAL Express will likely resume flights once tensions ease.
China Southern accounts for about 21 percent of capacity in the Philippines-China market, while Air China holds the remaining 6 percent.
CAPA said China could become the largest source of tourists for the Philippines once the travel warning is lifted and the Scarborough Shoal conflict resolved.
At present, South Korea is the largest source of visitors to the Philippines with more than 30,000 weekly one-way scheduled seats between the two countries. During the peak periods, this increased to 40,000 weekly seats.
Hong Kong is the largest international market from the Philippines based on a capacity of 36,284 one-way seats per week, while Singapore had 29,364 one-way seats per week, and Japan, 21,364 seats per week.
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