Singapore's visitor arrivals tumble 13 per cent in March

Singapore's visitor arrivals tumble 13 per cent in MarchSingapore - Visitor arrivals in Singapore tumbled 13.2 per cent year-on-year in March to 790,000 as the global economic crisis puts the brakes on the city state's tourism industry, the Singapore Tourism Board said Thursday.

However, the decline was not as sharp as in February when visitor arrivals in Singapore fell 15.2 per cent to 689,000, the lowest number in four years.

In March, tourist arrivals in 12 out of the top 15 markets decreased compared to March last year, "a reflection of the impact of the current global economic slowdown on consumer sentiments and discretionary spending," the board said.

Malaysia, Germany and Vietnam were the only top markets with rising visitor numbers.

Visitor days in March reached 3 million, a decrease of 11 per cent compared to a year ago.

Occupancy in Singapore's hotels fell 13.1 percentage points to 74 per cent in March.

Hotel room revenue was estimated at 125 million Singapore dollars (83 million US dollars), down by 33.3 per cent from March last year, the board said.

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