South korea package

The Hanoitimes – Health declaration is now required for everyone coming to Vietnam from South Korea.

Vietnam started to apply preventive safety measures to all passengers from South Korea as of 3:00pm on February 23 at all border gates, according to the Ministry of Health.

Due to the complicated evolution of the Covid-19 epidemic in South Korea, Vietnam’s Ministry of Health on Sunday held a meeting with relevant ministries and agencies to analyze the situation in South Korea and proposed measures to prevent the disease from spreading through arrivals from the Northeast Asian country.

Illustrative photo

Health declaration is now required for everyone coming from South Korea, according to a Health Ministry regulation issued yesterday. Those with symptoms like high fever, coughing and breathing difficulties will be put in quarantine.

Besides, following the Vietnamese government’s instruction, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has urgently adopt measures to protect Vietnamese citizens in South Korea.

The Vietnamese embassy in South Korea has set up an emergency telephone line for citizen protection which is +82 106 315 6618 and available 24/7.

The Vietnam Overseas Labor Office in South Korea has also made public an emergency number which is +82 103 248 6886 for Vietnamese workers to contact when they need assistance.

There are currently about 200,000 Vietnamese citizens studying and working in South Korea, including 8,285 people in Daegu city, 18,502 people in Gyeongsangbuk province and 333 people in Cheongdo district, South Korean localities hardest hit by the pandemic.

According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, South Korean tourists coming to Vietnam have been booming in recent years.

Last year, 3.16 million South Korean visitors arrived in Vietnam, an increase of 46.5% year-on-year, making South Korea the second largest international tourist source for, just behind China.

According to the data analysis page of OAG Schedules Analyzer, two way flights between Vietnam and South Korea accounted for 44.5% of Vietnam’s international flights in 2018.

According to an update of the Ministry of Health, as of February 24, South Korea alone has 602 cases of new coronavirus infections, an increase of 46 cases compared to a day earlier.

The Hanoitimes – The Hanoi’s authorities will have to plan quarantine and monitor Vietnamese returning from South Korea.

Hanoi would isolate people from South Korea’s regions infected with Covid-19 epidemic for 14 days from the day of their arrival in the capital city, Zing.vn quoted Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Health Hoang Duc Hanh as saying at a meeting on February 23.

Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung speaks at the meeting. Photo: Zing

According to Hanh, there are about 26,000 Vietnamese citizens living in Deagu and North Gyeongsang, the two South Korea’s provinces where Covid-19 broke out, and asked the Epidemic Prevention Steering Committee to set plan for quarantining the returnees from there.

Hanh requested isolatation of South Korean tourists coming from these two provinces for 14 days at their accommodation facilities.

Director of the Hanoi Department of Health Nguyen Khac Hien also suggested that the Hanoi’s authorities consider including tourists from South Korea, Japan and Singapore into the isolation list. The number of infections in these three countries has risen fast over the past week.

For Vietnamese traveling abroad, the authorities must be communicated about their itineraries. The Hanoi Department of Tourism needs to monitor the tourist attractions, especially the places with crowds of foreigners such as commercial centers, golf courses, among others.

Speaking at the meeting, Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung emphasized that although South Korea and Japan have not been declared as epidemic outbreak regions, the risk of transmission from the citizens of these countries in Hanoi is high.

Besides, around 200,000 Vietnamese are working and studying in South Korea, Chung said.

He added it is likely that in the coming days, the Hanoi’s authorities will have to plan quarantine and monitor Vietnamese returning from South Korea. “If these citizens return home, thousands of them will arrive in Hanoi. Thus, we need to anticipate and take action,” Chung said.

The Hanoitimes – However, as South Korean passengers have now cancelled air bookings to Vietnam, airlines are reducing flight frequency to South Korea.

Despite the complicated situation of Covid-19 outbreak in South Korea, the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport (MoT) has not considered suspending flights between Vietnam and South Korea, according to Le Anh Tuan, vice minister of transport.

Illustrative photo.

However, as a large number of South Korean passengers have cancelled air bookings to Vietnam, airlines are reducing flight frequency to South Korea, said Tuan in an interview with Vietnam News Agency on February 23.

Without passengers, most airlines have suspended flight routes from Vietnam to Daegu, the epicenter of the outbreak, while only Vietjet Air flies to Daegu at the moment, Tuan added.

According to Tuan, the MoT is closely monitoring the situation of the epidemic in Daegu and has sought the instruction from Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control.

On February 21, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) released a statement refuting rumor that all flights between Vietnam and South Korea and Vietnam and Japan have been suspended.

The CAAV urged the public to update information from official websites of related government agencies.

As of present, the CAAV has only stopped flights between Vietnam and China as requested by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Amid the surging cases of Covid-19 infections in South Korea, the Consular Department under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged Vietnamese citizens in South Korea to refrain from going to high risk areas and strictly follow guidance of local authorities to prevent the spread of the outbreak.

The Hanoitimes – As of present, four Vietnamese airlines are operating 14 flight routes to South Korean’s major cities.

Bamboo Airways has become Vietnam’s first airline to suspend flights to South Korea due to the rapid spread of the Covid-19 epidemic in the Northeast Asian country.

In a bid to ensure safety for passengers and the community, the airline would suspend the operation of two routes Da Nang – Incheon (DAD-ICN) and Nha Trang – Incheon (CXR-ICN) from February 26, said Bamboo Airways in a statement.

Currently, DAD-ICN and CXR – ICN routes are being operated daily by Bamboo Airways with a frequency of seven two-way flights per week each with A321NEO.

“The operation suspension of these two routes is an extremely important and necessary action to actively contribute to preventing the spread of epidemic,” said the airline.

The airline also urged Vietnamese citizens or South Korean visitors planning to come back to their hometown should proactively arrange the return schedule before the mentioned deadline.

As of present, four Vietnam airlines, including Vietnam Airlines, Bamboo Airways, Vietjet Air and Jetstar Pacific are operating 14 air routes from Nha Trang, Da Lat, Hai Phong, Danang, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Busan, Incheon, Jeolla-Nam, Gangwon, Cheongwon-gu and Daegu with 182 two-way flights per week, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV).

Meanwhile, eight South Korean airlines are conducting 10 flight routes from Busan, Incheon, Daegu and Jeolla-Nam to Cam Ranh, Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with 381 two-way flights per week.

Vice Minister of Transport Le Anh Tuan on February 23 said Vietnam has not considered suspending flights between the country and South Korea. However, as a large number of South Korean passengers have canceled air bookings to Vietnam, airlines are reducing flight frequency to South Korea, said Tuan.

Without passengers, most airlines have suspended flight routes from Vietnam to Daegu, the epicenter of the outbreak, while only Vietjet Air flies to Daegu at the moment, Tuan added.

China is the only market to date that the CAAV decided to halt all flights, starting on February 1 until further notice.

The Hanoitimes – Northeast Asian markets such as China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea make up a significant source of revenue for Vietnamese airlines.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has estimated the Covid-19 epidemic would cause a decline of 15% year-on-year in the number of air passengers and a loss of VND25 trillion (US$1.08 billion) in revenue to local airlines, VnExpress reported.

At a meeting on February 27, CAAV Director Dinh Viet Thang said the agency has envisioned two scenarios for Vietnam’s aviation market in 2020 under the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic.

In the first scenario where the epidemic is contained before April, airlines in Vietnam would handle a total of 67 million passengers, down 15% year-on-year, including 32 million foreign and 35 million domestic passengers.

However, if the epidemic could only be controlled in June, air passengers are predicted to fall 22% year-on-year to a total of 61 million, including 10 million foreign passengers.

Flag carrier Vietnam Airlines expected the number of passengers to decline 2.5 million this year, leading to a decrease of VND12 trillion (US$519 million) in revenue.

In addition to a plunge in the number of Chinese passengers, Vietnam Airlines is facing a decline in the number of passengers in other international and domestic routes.

Other airlines Vietjet Air and Jestar Pacific are seeing the same dim perspective.

Thang said Northeast Asian markets such as China, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea make up a significant source of revenue for Vietnamese airlines.

Since the outbreak of the disease, local airlines have suspended all flight routes to China, meaning a loss of around eight million passengers for 2020.

Meanwhile, the number of two-way flights to South Korea has been down 41% compared to last year, standing at 141 round trips per week against 191 in 2019.

Notably, the number of passengers between Vietnam and South Korea plunged over 50% from an average of 26,000 daily to around 8,000  – 12,000.

For flight routes to/from Taiwan (China), the flight frequency declined 25% to 172 from the previous 231 per week, of which Vietnamese airlines cut 34% of their flights to Taiwan.

Regarding the Japanese market, flight operation is not affected at the moment, but airlines are considering reducing flights.

Amid the dire situation for local airlines, the CAAV are proposing financial support to help them partially offset the losses.

At the meeting, Minister of Transport Nguyen Van The agreed with these initiatives and said airlines could open new flight routes to India and other domestic destinations.

The Hanoitimes – In the January – November period, Vietnam imported 135,230 cars worth US$2.91 billion, up 100.4% in quantity and 97.7% in value year-on-year.

Hefty imports of cars and crude oil into Vietnam helped customs authorities collect over VND335.6 trillion (US$14.48 billion) in taxes as of December 17, exceeding the target of VND315.5 trillion (US$13.61 billion) set by the Ministry of Finance and up 11.6% year-on-year, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC).

Overview of the conference. Source: GDVC.

In the January – November period, Vietnam imported 135,230 cars worth US$2.91 billion, up 100.4% in volume and 97.7% in value year-on-year, leading to customs revenue of VND38.2 trillion (US$1.64 billion), up VND19.32 trillion(US$833.77 million) or 102.4% year-on-year.

Meanwhile, nearly 7.07 million tons of crude oil were imported in the 11-month period worth US$3.33 billion, up 58% in volume and 38% in value year-on-year, resulting in customs revenue of VND7.87 trillion (US$339.64 million), up 41% year-on-year.

Customs revenue from other goods also increased VND14.72 trillion (US$635.26 million), up 5.8% year-on-year, stated the GDVC.

According to the GDVC, such positive results were thanks to Vietnam’s actively participation in multilateral and bilateral cooperation with regional and international partners.

The signing and enforcement of a number of free trade agreements, including the Vietnam – South Korea FTA (VKFTA), the ASEAN – South Korea FTA (AKFTA), the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans – Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), have created a positive impact on Vietnam’s business environment, supporting local enterprises to expand investment and trade activities, said the GDVC.

Additionally, as of November 30, revenue gained from measures to prevent losses to the state budget was estimated at over VND3.88 trillion (US$167.44 million), including VND992 billion (US$42.81 million) from resolving tax arrears, VND1.8 trillion (US$77.67 million) from post-customs clearance, VND481 billion (US$20.75 million) from price consulting, VND448.3 billion (US$19.35 million) from anti-smuggling, and VND167.1 billion (US$7.21 million) from inspections.